A Cat and her Hero: This is me
by Littleflamekitten
Summary: Koneko is a girl who wants to be a hero among thousands of other people who want the same thing. Then she moves and meets two boys who want nothing to do with each other. Both want so desperately to become heroes but one is quirkless. How will her world change when all three get into the most prestigious school in Japan, UA High?
1. Chapter 1

Let me give you a quick rundown on Koneko's family.

Koneko's mother's quirk is a healing quirk. The more intimately she touches someone the better the result.  
Koneko's father had a copy quirk. He can copy objects that he touches.  
Anzu, Koneko's older sister, has a mutation quirk. She can copy someone's appearance by touching them. Just like her mother, the more intimately she touches someone the longer she has their appearance.  
Koneko has a copy quirk. She can copy someone's quirk by touching them. The strength and time depend on how intimately she touches the person.  
Eiko, Koneko's twin, has the same quirk as their mother.

Oh and if you want to see some art check out my DeviantArt:  
littleflamekitten/gallery/71875038/a-cat-and-her-hero

* * *

"Look at that quirkless cat."

"She's useless. A quirkless wanna be."

Quirkless. Useless. Those words floated around me for my entire life. In a way I was, I could never save someone when the time came. I was useless. I tried not to let that stop me. I spent all my time training and analyzing people's quirks. I was finally feeling normal and then we moved. I was hoping it would get better and I wouldn't be bullied but I made friends with the wrong person. Izuku Midoriya was a quirkless student but he was the only one who welcomed me. We quickly found out that we had something in common; we both had notebooks full of hero's quirks. With this friendship, I was targeted by a bully. Katsuki Bakugou was the school bully. He bullied Izuku since childhood and now he targeted me.

"Hey, Neko."

I sighed and turned around, my tail flicking back and forth behind me. "Can I help you Bakugou?"

"Is this yours?" he held up something.

My eyes widened and my ears flattened against my head. In his hand was one of my notebooks, not just anyone but the one that was all about him. "H-hey give that back!" I reached up.

He smirked and held it just out of my reach.

"Bakugou!" I jumped up and my fingers brushed the cover. "Give it back!"

"Why should I?" he sneered.

"Because it's mine." I jumped again.

He pulled back and I fell on top of him. I quickly jerked away, a blush covering my face. Bakugou scowled and tossed my notebook at me. It hit me in the face, I yelped and rubbed my face. Bakugou rolled his eyes and walked away. I watched him go, biting my lip. He may be mean but he has a sweet side. I've seen him early in the morning, when he's out running he's so calm and peaceful. He's not just all ego and pride. I've seen him save cats out of trees, he works himself to the bone to remain on top, but he never shows weakness.

"Koneko-chan!"

I turned towards the voice. Izuku ran over.

"Are you okay? I saw Kacchan hit you in the face." Izuku looked me over carefully.

"I'm fine, it didn't hurt that much." I shrugged.

"Are you sure?" Izuku looked unsure.

"Yep!" I grinned. "Come on, you ready to go?"

"Oh yeah. You're coming over to my house, right?"

"Yep!"

Izuku smiled and we headed over to his house. Along the walk home I spotted Bakugou, he was glaring at us. I gave him a small smile. He quickly turned away and walked into a house.

"Hey, Izuku? Does Bakugou live around here?" I asked.

"Huh? Oh yeah, he lives right there." Izuku pointed to the house Bakugou just walked into.

"I didn't know that. I live just down the street." I pointed to my house.

"Don't let Kacchan know that. He might bully you more."

"It'll be fine. He doesn't care about me. Like he would figure out where I live."

"If you say so." Izuku shrugged and we continued to his house.

My mind kept wandering back to Bakugou, would he find out where I lived? I had been here for several months, if he didn't know now then he wouldn't. Unless we became friends. I almost laughed. Me and Bakugou friends? That would never happen. He would never associate with someone like me. Ever.

I don't know when I started to love Bakugou but I was sure I did. I couldn't help but fill notebooks upon notebooks with his characteristics, fighting style, expressions, anything and everything I could think of. I copied his quirk when he wasn't paying attention, by brushing his hand or bumping into him the school hall. I often found myself wondering how strong it would be if I kissed him or even more. I trained in my backyard by myself until dark, trying to get as good as him. One day when I thought I could take him on I walked to his house after school. I summoned my courage and knocked on his front door. His mother answered, at least I think it was his mother. She looked almost identical to him but gorgeous. Bakugou was handsome but this woman looked like she was a supermodel. I sucked in a breath, I wasn't ready for this.

"Um, I, uh, is, um," I tried to speak but failed. I took a deep breath and started again. "Is Bakugou home?"

She smiled. "Are you one of his classmates?"

"Yes, my name's Koneko Chino. I live a few houses down." I was starting to feel calmer. That was until Bakugou appeared.

"What are you doing here, Neko?" He growled.

"Oh I um er, I uh was wonder if um, you wanted to spar with me?" I couldn't meet his gaze.

"With you? Aren't you quirkless?" He leaned against the door frame.

"No!" I finally met his gaze, my ears twitching in irritation. "My quirk is copy."

"Sure," he scoffed. "My answer is no."

"Come on, if you think I'm that weak it'll be an easy win for you." I challenged, I knew he couldn't resist showing off.

"Fine. We'll spar in the backyard." He walked back into the house.

"I hope you know what you're doing." His mom watched him go. "He won't hesitate to hurt you."

"I know. I think I can take him." I couldn't help the smile that appeared on my face. I was finally going to spar Bakugou.

His mother invited me into the house and led me to the backyard. I sat my bag down on the patio and walked onto the grass. I surveyed the landscape, I spotted Bakugou walking towards me.

"Ready?" He asked.

"Sure," I held out my hand. "May the best person win."

Bakugou eyed my hand for a moment then shook it. The moment he touched me I felt his quirk run through my veins. My palms began sweating. I glanced up at the sky, it was a warm day which helped both of us. Bakugou readied his stance and I braced myself, my tail twitching slightly. He lunged at me with a right hook. I was able to dodge it and fire an explosion. He jumped back.

"What the hell?" He exclaimed.

"I told you my quirk is copy." I readied my stance.

He growled and lunged at me again. I was able to grab his arm and throw him down. He gasped and started coughing. I backed up as he got up. He charged at me and tackled me to the ground. I yelped as my head hit the ground. He straddled my waist and grabbed my wrists.

"Your first mistake was getting up and letting me get back up. Your second was challenging me."

"And yours, was topping me." I grinned, realizing the intimate position we were in.

"What?" He looked surprised.

I turned my hands and fired off two large explosions. It threw Bakugou back, I quickly stood back up. Bakugou looked up at me in surprise.

"What? Surprised that I can do that? You're the one who topped me." I shrugged but rubbed my forearms lightly. My body was not ready for that size of an explosion.

Bakugou just growled and lunged at me, faking a right hook and hitting me with his left. It threw me back across the yard. I paused then grinned.

"That was impressive. I haven't seen you do that one before." I stood back up on shaky legs.

He grinned and lunged at me again. I was ready for him this time. I jumped up, using explosions to lift me higher. I grabbed his shoulders and, using my momentum, flipped him over and threw him across the yard.

"Alright you two!" Ms. Bakugou called. "That's enough before one of you gets hurt."

Bakugou and I froze. I had forgotten that his mother was still here. I relaxed my stance and rubbed my forearms.

"Geez I thought I had a good understanding of your power but wow, that is a lot stronger than I realized." I winced as I stretched my arms. 'Imagine what I could do with a kiss.' I thought.

"Of course. It is my power after all." He smirked.

"I mean I've been working with a brush of your hand or a bump in the halls. And I thought that was strong." I rambled slightly. "I've worked with strong quirks but wow, yours is amazing. You're so lucky. You have that power all the time."

"What exactly is your quirk?" Bakugou cut me off. "You keep rambling about touch. What does that have to do with your quirk?"

"Oh my quirk is copy. The more intimately I touch someone stronger the quirk. So say if I touched you in the most intimate way possible I'd have your power at its max. Everything below that is weaker. I can get by with a brush of someone's hand but the best way is a kiss." I stopped. "I'm rambling, sorry."

Bakugou just nodded then walked back inside. I grabbed my bag and followed him in. He went to the kitchen. I paused just outside.

"Um thanks. For sparring with me. It's kinda hard to improve by myself."

Bakugou poured himself some water. "You weren't half bad. Come back when you think you can beat me."

I grinned. "You won't be seeing the last of me." I started to the front door. Ms. Bakugou beat me there.

"Don't make yourself scarce, you're the first friend he has had over since grade school."

"She's not my friend!" Bakugou called.

Ms. Bakugou leaned forwards. "Don't listen to him. He doesn't spar with just anyone."

"I figured. Not many people can hold their own against him."

She smiled. "But you did."

I blushed and looked away. "Well, I've been watching him for a while. I've practically memorized his fighting style."

"Oh really? What else have you memorized?" She leaned closer.

I panicked, my tail tucking itself between my legs, she knew, she knew I liked him. I tried to calm myself down. "N—Nothing. Just his fighting style."

"Hmm, if you say so. Well you're welcome to come back anytime." She backed up and smiled.

"Oh thank you." I smiled back then opened the door.

I walked back to my house, replaying the fight over and over in my head. Bakugou had actually straddled me. It didn't mean anything but the power it gave me was amazing. I couldn't even begin to imagine how powerful a kiss would be. I before I could get to my front door I ran into Kirishima.

"Oh," I froze. "Uh hi."

"Hey," he smiled.

I walked past him and opened the door. "Eiko! You have a friend!" I turned back to Kirishima. "She's probably in her room."

"Thanks." He walked upstairs.

I turned down my hall and dropped my bag off in my room before heading to the kitchen. Eiko and Kirishima were already in there, getting a snack. I grabbed a glass of water. Eiko wrinkled her nose.

"You stink. What did you do? Roll in a pile of trash?"

I finished my water before I spoke. "I just finished training." I fought the smile on my face. My hands were still sweating, which meant I still had Bakugou's quirk.

"With who? You weren't in the backyard." Eiko asked.

"A neighbor." I replied.

"How good are you?" Kirishima suddenly asked.

I looked over in surprise. "Why don't you find out?" I headed to the backyard. "Come on, I want to test this quirk against your hardening."

I had no idea if he followed me but when I got to the backyard he was right behind me. I stretched a little.

"I'd recommend taking off your shirt if you'd like to keep it." I said.

Kirishima glanced at Eiko. "I'll keep it on."

I fired off a few explosions. "It's your funeral."

His eyes grew wide. "On second thought, I'll take it off."

"Good idea." I grinned, Eiko was going to love this.

He took off his shirt and tossed it on the patio. Then he readied his stance, I readied mine, my tail flicking. He seemed hesitant to attack me so I lunged first. He held his arms up to block. I used an explosion to lunch me higher and fire on at his back. He grunted and fell forward.

"Kirishima!" Eiko called.

"He's fine." I muttered. "It wasn't that hard of a blast."

Sure enough, he had hardened and was still on his feet. He turned on me and started punching. I went on the defensive, trying to figure out his style. It seemed like it was pretty basic since he didn't have a flashy quirk. I continued to dodge until I found an opening but by that time he had landed several hits. I was breathing heavily, I had a cut on my cheek. I ducked under another punch and shot a blast at him, hitting his side and knocking him over.

"Koneko! That's enough! You'll hurt him!" Eiko called.

I stopped and relaxed. "Alright, fine. Good job Kirishima."

"Thanks. You're not too bad yourself." He smiled.

"Thanks, I try." I grinned.

"Great now you can go shower." Eiko pushed me towards the house.

"Alright, alright. I'm going." I laughed and walked back into the house.

I walked to my bathroom and took a quick shower, it felt good to be clean. I stepped out of the shower and dried off, I crossed the hall and walked into my room. I changed clothes and brushed my hair. I opted for a braid since I couldn't put it up in a ponytail. I walked back to the kitchen. Mom was in there now. She looked up as I walked in.

"Hi sweetie. Eiko tells me you sparred with Kirishima."

"Yep, she stopped us before either of us won." I sat down at the island.

"What quirk did you use?" She sat a plate of apple slices in front of me.

"Explosion." I replied.

"The one you've been training with?"

"Yep. It's a powerful quirk." My palms were still sweating, so I released a few blasts.

"You still have it?" She seemed surprised.

"Uh yeah, I got a better touch then a hand brush." I munched on my apple slices.

"You know you need to train with other quirks right?"

"Why do you think I have a thousand notebooks?"

She smiled and kissed my cheek. I felt the cut on my cheek heal almost instantly, along with some of my other bruises.

"Thanks." I said.

Eiko and Kirishima came downstairs. He laughed at something she said and I saw him wince. I watched them for a moment, wondering what it would be like if I was that close to Bakugou. I stood up and walked over to them.

"How's your side?" I asked, lightly touching the side I hit him on.

He winced again. "It hurts but I'll be okay."

"Wait, you're still hurt?" Eiko exclaimed.

"Yeah but I'll be okay. Don't worry." He smiled.

I leaned over to Eiko. "Kiss him, it'll heal him right up."

She blushed and looked at me in shock. "What? No!"

"Oh come on, its just a kiss. If you don't I can." I smirked, my tail flicking slightly.

"Fine, I'll do it." She looked up at Kiri. "Um could I uh kiss you?"

Kirishima looked shocked. "Kiss me? What?"

"So I can heal you." She looked away.

"Oh um I guess." He glanced at me.

I shrugged and backed away. Eiko stood up on her tip-toes and pressed a light kiss to his lips. He hesitantly placed his hands on her waist. I grinned, it was finally happening. Eiko pulled away, her cheeks bright red. Kirishima blushed and looked away.

"Um thanks." Kirishima stammered. He hesitated then headed to the door. "I'll uh see you tomorrow?"

"Y—Yeah." Eiko nodded.

Kirishima left without another word. As soon as he was gone Eiko buried her face in her hands. I patted her shoulder.

"Good job. You finally kissed him." I fought a grin.

She just groaned in response. I laughed and walked to my room. Maybe, just maybe I could kiss Bakugou one day.


	2. Chapter 2

Over the next few months, I got to know Bakugou better, much to his dismay. I got better at fighting and I wasn't bullied so much. My feelings for Bakugou kept growing but I kept them locked away. I could never let him know I liked him. Bakugou and I had set up a schedule, we would spar on weekends and ignore each other on school days. That was his idea and it was fine. I still got to see him without raising suspicion from Izuku. I tried to teach Izuku to fight back but he refused. I dropped it after a few weeks. If he didn't want to learn he didn't have to. I needed to focus on my own training with the UA exams less than a year away. I knew it was probably a long shot but I wanted to try anyway. It was worth a shot. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror before I headed out for school. My tail was held high, my ears were facing forward, and I was gaining muscle, I looked confident. I grinned, maybe I could actually do something in a fight. I made my way to school a smile on my face the whole way. I ran into Bakugou on the way but he ignored me.

"Bakugou," I called. I ran up to his side. "Are we still on for training tomorrow?"

He glanced at me. "I am if you are."

"Sweet. I know I've said this before but thank you for training with me. It's really helped." I smiled. "It'll help me get into UA."

Bakugou stopped. "What?"

"It'll help me get into UA. I'm trying to get into UA. Just like you." I hesitated, my tail slipped between my legs. "All Might went there. It's the best school out there."

"You can't get into UA." He growled. "You don't have what it takes."

"But it's still worth a shot. I'll never know if I don't try." I looked down. "I've wanted to be a hero since I was little. My sister got in so who says I can't."

He scoffed. "You need a quirk to get in."

"I have one. I just need someone else."

"Exactly, you have to rely on someone else for your power. You can't beat me. You need my quirk." He started walking again.

"Fine, I'll fight you tomorrow with a different quirk." I huffed.

I crossed the street and ignored Bakugou for the rest of the walk to school. I focused on my school work and hung out with Izuku.

"Hey, Koneko? Are you okay? You seem a little down." Izuku sat his pencil down. "And plus, your tail has been tucked between your legs all day."

I looked up from my homework. "Oh really? It's nothing."

"Really?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine." I looked back down at my work but Bakugou's words still rang in my head. "Izuku, do you think I'm strong?"

"Of course! You're amazing!"

"But I have to rely on someone. I can't fight by myself." I whispered.

"That doesn't mean you're not strong. Yes, in order to use your quirk you need someone else but you're strong on your own."

I looked up at Izuku. "Do you really mean that?"

"I've seen you train, you could even take on Kacchan." He grinned. "You're super strong."

"Thank you Izuku." I smiled and went back to my homework.

The next day I headed to Bakugou's house with a new quirk. I had cornered Kirishima before he had gotten inside and had stolen a kiss from him. I tested his quirk as I walked. I will beat Bakugou, I have to. I knocked on the Bakugou's door and almost instantly Bakugou answered.

"You're late."

"Actually, we never set up a time so I could be early." I huffed, ears twitching.

"She got you there, Katsuki." Ms. Bakugou called.

Bakugou grumbled something under his breath and walked to the backyard. I shrugged and followed him. He walked to the middle and started stretching.

"So what quirk did you copy today?" He asked.

"Hardening," I replied, activating the quirk.

"Not super flashy." He muttered.

"But it's defensive against yours," I smirked.

"Whatever, just get ready." He said.

"Alright," I took off my shirt.

"W-What are you doing?!" He sputtered.

"What can't handle a shirtless woman?" I laughed. "Relax, I don't want to ruin my shirt."

Bakugou growled and lunged at me. I yelped and jumped backward, narrowly avoiding his explosion.

"Hey! I wasn't ready!" I yelled.

"So? You think a villain would wait for you to be ready?" He hissed.

"No, but—"

"Then you should be ready!" He yelled.

I grunted as he threw explosion after explosion at me. My hardening was deteriorating fast, I couldn't hold out for very long. I ducked under another explosion and punched him in the stomach. He grunted and stumbled backward, coughing. I panted and relaxed my quirk for a moment. Bakugou straightened and lunged at me again.

"Don't drop your guard. You think just because you got one punch in doesn't mean I'm going to surrender!"

I managed to dodge his explosion and land another punch. It went back and forth until I ran out of time on my quirk. I threw my arms up to block his final punch.

"Okay, okay, I surrender," I called.

Bakugou scoffed. "Finally."

I was breathing hard. "That was fun. Thanks, Katsuki."

We both froze. I had been calling him Katsuki in my mind but now I had accidentally said it out loud. Almost immediately I tucked my tail between my legs and flattened my ears, trying to look smaller.

"What?" He growled.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. It just slipped out." I put my hands up, knowing he wouldn't hesitate to throw a punch.

But he didn't. He just stood there, frozen.

"Um, Kat—Bakugou?" I had almost done it again. "Are you okay?"

"It's fine."

"What?" I frowned.

"I said it's fine. You can call me Katsuki." He didn't look at me.

I froze. "Do—do you really mean that?"

"Yes. Now shut up before I change my mind."

"Thanks," I smiled.

"Whatever, get that stupid look off your face!" He barked.

"Why? I'm happy." My smile widened.

"You look stupid." He muttered.

"Oh come on Katsuki, you don't mean that." I fake pouted.

"Now you look even more ridiculous." He looked away.

"Fine, fine." I grabbed my shirt off the ground. "See you tomorrow?"

"Yeah," he rubbed at his forearms.

I smiled. "See you tomorrow Katsuki."

I left his house with a smile on my face, it didn't leave my face even when I got home. I was lucky enough to avoid my mother and sister. I took a quick shower then went to the kitchen for a snack. Ms. Bakugou was sitting on our living room couch when I walked in.

"Oh Ms. Bakugou, I uh didn't know you knew where we lived." I paused.

"Please, call me Mitsuki. Your mother and I are friends."

"Really? I've never seen you here before." I shifted slightly.

"I normally come when you're in school." She leaned forward. "I actually came to ask you a question."

"Me?" My ears involuntarily flattened against my head.

"Yes, you. Come here."

I walked over to the couch and sat down. She smiled slightly.

"Now, I've been watching you train with Katsuki for several months. And I've noticed your attitude towards him."

I gripped the edge of the couch. "My attitude?" I tried to sound calm.

"Yes, your attitude. You love him, don't you?"

My mind blanked. "I—What?"

"You love him, or you at least like him more than a friend." Mitsuki shrugged. "I've noticed in the way you act towards him. I don't think he's noticed yet, if he has he's never said anything."

"But I— I was so—" I couldn't form a complete sentence.

"Listen, I just wanted to tell you a few things." She sighed. "Katsuki is a brat but he needs someone to keep him in line. I think you could do that. He's terrible with words but he means well. Just be patient with him and he'll open up."

I nodded. "I know."

She smiled. "Good," she stood up. "Now tell your mom that I came over. I have to make sure Katsuki doesn't burn the house down." She gave me a wink before leaving.

I stayed on the couch for a few more minutes. Eiko walked downstairs and waved a hand in front of my face.

"Hello, earth to Koneko. You okay?"

I shook my head. "Yeah, I'm fine." I stood up. "I'll be in my room."

"Okay," Eiko shrugged and walked away.

I walked into my room and closed the door. I sat on my bed, trying to process. Did I just get Mitsuki's blessing? I laughed, Katsuki wouldn't like that. I laid back on my bed, I had Mitsuki's blessing. She thought I could handle Katsuki, even at his worse. Now if I could only confess to Katsuki, then maybe just maybe I could have a chance.


	3. Chapter 3

Okay so just as a warning, there is mention of suicide in this chapter. It doesn't go into much detail but it's there. Just thought I'd put a warning up.

* * *

I trudged into class on Monday morning. School had only started a week ago but I was already exhausted. I did not want to be here. We all sat at our desks waiting for the teacher to arrive. I laid my head down on the desk. The teacher walked in and we started our class.

"So as third-year students, it's time to start thinking seriously about your futures and what you want to do with your lives. I could pass out some career aptitude tests but why bother?" The teacher tossed the paper in the air. "I know you all want to go to the hero track."

Everyone cheered and activated their quirks, everyone but Katsuki, Izuku and me.

"Yes, yes, you've got some very impressive quirks. But no power usage allowed in school."

"Hey teach," Katsuki called. "Don't lump me in with this bunch of losers. I'm the real deal but these guys will be lucky to end up as sidekick to some busted d-lister."

Everyone started yelling again.

"Let's go, I'll take you all on." Katsuki laughed.

"You've got impressive test results. Maybe you will get into UA High." The teacher said.

"He's going to try for the national school?"

"That school has got a point two acceptance rate."

"It's impossible to get in to."

"That's why it's the only place worthy of me." Katsuki jumped onto his desk. "I aced all the mock tests. I'm the only one at this school who stands a chance at getting in. I'll end up more popular than All Might himself and be the richest hero of all time. People all across the world will know who I am. And it all starts with UA High!"

"Oh yeah Midoriya, Chino, don't you two want to go to UA too?"

Katsuki froze. Everyone looked over at Izuku then burst out laughing. I sighed, I was once again invisible. The girl in front of me turned around.

"You want to go to UA?"

"Well yeah my sister went, so I thought I could try. You never know until you try. I have backup plans but it's worth a shot." I shrugged.

Suddenly there was an explosion. I turned and saw Izuku on the floor and Katsuki's hands smoking.

"Listen up Deku," Katsuki yelled. "You're even worse than the rest of these damn rejects, you quirkless wannabe. You really think they'd let someone like you in when they could have me?"

"Katsuki!" I stood up.

"No, wait, you've got it all wrong. Really. I'm not trying to compete against you." Izuku backed up until he hit the wall. "You gotta believe me! It's just that I've wanted to be a hero since I was little. I may not have a quirk, but I can still try my hardest, can't I?"

"You'd never be able to hang with the best of the best. You'd die in the exams. Defenseless Izuku. This school's already crappy, you really want to embarrass it more by failing so hard."

"Katsuki," I grabbed his shoulder. "Leave him alone. I think you've scared him enough."

He shrugged my hand off. "Back off, no one asked you."

"Katsuki," I lowered my voice, tail twitching. "You don't want to make a scene. If you hurt him it'll leave a permeant mark on your ledger."

He glared at me but backed down. He shoved his hands in his pockets and stomped back to his seat. I sighed and helped Izuku up. The rest of class went by without any incident. I knew as soon as school was over I would have no control over Katsuki. I watched as Katsuki made his way over to Izuku. Katsuki grabbed Izuku's notebook.

"I don't know what you think you're doing Deku but we're not done."

"What'd you got? His diary?" One of Katsuki's "friends" walked up.

Katsuki held up the notebook, I knew instantly that it was one of Izuku's hero analysis notebooks.

"Huh? Don't tell me you're taking notes on how to be a hero?" Katsuki's friend laughed.

"He's delusional." The other boy laughed.

"Yeah, real funny guys." Izuku stood up. "Just give it back."

Katsuki did the opposite. He exploded it then threw it out the window. Izuku screamed.

"Most first string heroes show potential early on. People look at them and just know they're destined for greatness. When I'm the only student from his garbage junior high to get into UA people will start talking about me like that. They'll realize I'm legit, the big thing. That's not ego talking, I just know I'm good."

I scoffed. That was ego, one hundred percent.

Katsuki put his hand on Izuku's shoulder, it started smoking. "Here's a little word of advice, nerd. Don't even think of applying or else."

Izuku was still shaking, even as Katsuki let him go and walked off.

"That's just sad. I thought you had at least some fight in you." One boy said.

"He finally gets it. He'll never be a hero." The other boy replied. "Better to find out now instead of later I guess."

Katsuki stopped at the door and turned back. "You know if you really want to be a hero that badly, there actually might be another way. Just pray that'll be born with a quirk in your next life, and take a swan dive off the roof of the building."

Okay, that was the final straw. I jumped up, knocking my chair over. Izuku turned around as if to say something but Katsuki fired off several explosions.

"Something wrong?"

Izuku froze. I growled, ears back and tail twitching, and followed Katsuki out of the classroom. I grabbed Katsuki's wrist and copied his quirk. He pulled out of my grasp.

"Get lost Neko." He growled.

"Yeah, get lost you stupid cat." One of the boys laughed.

I turned around and fired off a few of my own explosions. "How about you leave?"

"Okay," the boys backed off.

Once they were gone I turned on Katsuki. I grabbed his shirt collar and pressed him against the wall. He grabbed my wrist and fired off an explosion. I winced but didn't let go.

"Listen, I get that you don't like Izuku. But don't you even dare tell him to kill himself. You have no idea what that can do to a person." I hissed. "If you ever do that again, I will hurt you. Slowly and painfully."

He scoffed. "Yeah right."

I slammed my hand against the wall firing an explosion close to his head. "I don't play around when it comes to people's lives."

He didn't answer. I let go of his collar, tail twitching aggressively.

"Mark my words, Katsuki. Don't ever play with someone's life. You may just be the tipping point." I turned and walked off, trying to ignore the onslaught of memories. I clenched my hands into fists. I had seen it happen before, to a quirkless girl. She had been so happy, until one day she wasn't. She had thought she would have a quirk in her next life. I quickly wiped at the tears that were running down my face. I pressed my hand against the wall, gripping my head. I tried to ignore the whispers.

'You should have done something.'

'You could have helped.'

'You should have told someone.'

'You could have stopped her.'

'Some hero you are.'

'You couldn't even save your best friend's life.'

'Do you think you could ever save anyone else?'

"Stop!" I yelled, my voice echoing in the empty hallway. But it didn't help, my chest tightened as the words continued. Spiraling me down into a pit of despair.

'You can't do anything.'

'You can't become a hero.'

'Useless.'

'Stupid.'

Even Katsuki's words came back.

'You can't get into UA. You don't have what it takes.'

A sob escaped my lips. They were all right. I couldn't do anything.

'Useless.'

That word kept spiraling around my head. Suddenly there was a hand on my shoulder. I looked up, realizing that I was on the floor. Izuku stared down at me, concern evident in his eyes.

"Are you okay?" He asked softly.

I stood up. "Izuku, promise me you won't listen to him. Your life is too precious, don't waste it." I touched his cheek. "Please, I can't lose another person."

"What? Koneko, I would never take my own life." He grabbed my hand. "Is that what you're so worked up about?"

I nodded, ears down. "Just promise me, please, that you won't even consider it. And if you did, you would tell someone."

"Of course. I promise." He looked into my eyes and I saw it was true. He would never do the same thing she did.

It was like a weight lifted off my shoulders. I sighed. "Thank you." I glanced down, he had his notebook in his hand. "You got your notebook back."

"Yeah, it's a little wet but it's still intact." He looked down at it.

"Katsuki's a jerk, huh?" I tried to smile.

"Yeah, but that's just Kacchan." He paused. "Wait, since when were you on a first-name basis?"

"Since two days ago." I rubbed the back of my neck, ears laid back. "Did I ever mention that I trained with him on the weekends?"

"No!" Izuku gaped at me.

"Yeah, I've been training with him for several months." I smiled. "So yeah."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Izuku suddenly became excited. "Have you learned anything new about his fighting style?"

I laughed. "Yeah actually. Um, why don't you come over later? I can show you some of my notebooks."

"Really?" His eyes lit up.

"Yeah." My smile widened and I started to forget everything that happened.

As we walked home, Izuku ranted about all the different ways Katsuki was amazing. He completely overlooked the fact that the same person told him to kill himself earlier. As I listened to Izuku talk I started to remember why I loved Katsuki, despite his faults. My phone chimed and I pulled it out.

"Oh shoot," I cut Izuku off. "I'll have to catch up with you later. I have to go pick up some stuff for my mom. I'll see you later right?"

"Yeah, I meet you at your house." He grinned.

"Okay, bye!" I jogged back to the store.

I grabbed the few things that my mom wanted then headed home. As I was walking home from the store the street next to me exploded. I jumped back, not wanting to get caught up in the blast. Once the blasts stopped I peered down the street. It was covered in smoke but I could make out a few explosions. They reminded me of Katsuki's explosions. People were running away from the blasts but I walked into the street. What was causing the blasts? A villain? Most likely. I stayed near the sides, I knew I shouldn't be here but something was drawing me closer. I glanced behind me and saw a small crowd gathering. Pro heroes were going to arrive soon. The smoked cleared and I could clearly see the villain. It was some sort of sludge villain, in the middle of the goop I could a person, a boy about my age…Katsuki.

"Katsuki!" I yelled, ears laid back in fear.

The villain looked over at me, I realized my mistake. I scrambled backward, trying to get out of the way. I pressed myself against the wall, I should have run away from the villain but I couldn't. I was frozen. DeathArms ran forwards and punched the villain, it didn't work. The villain knocked him backward, other heroes rushed to his aid. The villain swiped at the heroes.

"Stay back or I'll snap his neck!" The villain yelled.

"No!" I screamed.

Katsuki broke his mouth free with a shout. "You picked the wrong guy to mess with! I'm going to send you back to whatever sewer you crawled out of! Let me go!"

The street exploded, I covered my face with my hands. The smoke cleared slightly and I ran forwards. I grabbed Katsuki's face and kissed him hard. The villain pushed me away, I tumbled across the street, crying out in pain.

"Neko?" Katsuki seemed shocked. "Stay back."

The villain covered his mouth again. I could hear the shouts of the heroes and the civilians behind me but I couldn't decipher them, my ears were ringing too much. I pushed myself up and ran back at the villain. I placed my hands on either side of Katsuki's head.

"I'm sorry," I whispered before I let off several blasts.

The villain retreated, letting Katsuki breathe. He took several breaths before he tried to speak. I cut him off with another kiss, strengthening my quirk. I let off more explosions, allowing Katsuki to continue breathing.

"You brat!" The villain snarled.

"Let him go!" I yelled.

"Neko! You need to leave!" Katsuki managed. "Run!"

"Never! A hero doesn't run when someone's in trouble."

The villain swiped at me, I deflected him with another explosion.

"Koneko! I don't care that it may seem cowardly! Just run!" Katsuki yelled. "You can't get hurt!"

"Oh," the villain laughed. "So you two care about each other?"

I panicked and jumped back but the villain was faster. He grabbed me and squeezed me tightly.

"If you don't comply, I'll break her. You wouldn't want that now, would you?"

Katsuki didn't say anything but I could see him relax a little.

"No! You have to keep fighting!" I yelled.

The villain tightened his grip, I let out a strangled gasp.

"No!" Katsuki shouted.

I wiggled around and managed to fire a few explosions. The villain yelped and dropped me. I backed up and let off a few explosions, telling him to back off. In return, the villain tightened his hold on Katsuki. I muttered curses under my breath but backed away slowly. I heard people in the crowd yell something. I forced myself not to turn around.

"No, you idiot! Stop, you're going to get yourself killed!" DeathArms called.

I risked a looked back. "Izuku?"

"Not this brat again." The villain muttered. "You're toast kid!"

Izuku grabbed his backpack and threw it at the villain, hitting him in the face. The villain retracted. Katsuki pulled his face free, gasping for air.

"Kacchan!" Izuku yelled.

"What the hell?! Why are you here?!" Katsuki coughed.

"I don't know. My legs, they just started, moving." Izuku desperately clawed at the creature. "Kacchan, I couldn't just stand there and watch you die."

"Katsuki, for once in your life, accept help," I growled.

Katsuki managed a glare before the sludge covered his face again. I put my hands on either side of his head. Before I could fire off more explosions the villain punched me in the stomach, knocking me across the street. I could feel the bile rise and I threw up. I crashed to the ground, smacking my head hard. I tried to get up but my vision was spotty and tunneled. I collapsed to the ground, my arms not supporting my weight anymore. Just before I closed my eyes I saw All Might step out.

"Please, help him." I whispered before everything went black.

* * *

Cliff hanger! Sorry, not sorry :P

Now as much as I love Bakugou, the line "Take a swan dive off the roof of the building" always bothered me.  
Never, I repeat, never, joke around with someone's life. I don't care if it was a joke or not, you should never tell someone to kill themselves. You have no idea what they're going through, you may just be the tipping point. Just please be careful with your words.


	4. Chapter 4

"Neko! Neko! Koneko! Wake up!"

I shifted and opened my eyes, immediately regretting my decision. The bright light hurt my eyes. I winced and closed my eyes again.

"Neko, look at me!"

A shadow fell across my face. I opened my eyes again, meeting the crimson eyes above me. I groaned, a hand reaching for my stomach.

"Don't," Katsuki grabbed my hand. "You're badly bruised. You idiot, why didn't you run?"

"I had to save you. I couldn't just let you die." I coughed. "I told you I don't play around when it comes to people's lives."

"But you almost died!"

"I'm fine," I struggled to sit up.

"No, you're not." Katsuki helped me sit up.

"Okay, fine. But I will be. Eventually." I winced.

Another shadow fell over us. I looked up, All Might was standing above us.

"That was a very brave thing you did, stupid but brave." He knelt beside us. "You would make a great hero young one."

My eyes widened, I flattened my ears and looked away. "I only wanted to save Katsuki. I was being selfish."

"But you risked your life for him. So that makes it heroic."

"Just take the compliment, idiot," Katsuki grumbled.

I went to kick him but hissed in pain. Moving hurt like hell.

"Let's get you to the doctor." All Might picked me up and carried me to the ambulance.

Several reporters surrounded us. They shoved microphones in my face, shouting questions. I tucked my tail between my legs and flattened my ears, trying to seem smaller.

"Did you know the victim?"

"What is your quirk? People saw letting off explosions exactly like the villain's."

"What made you run into the fight?"

"Do you want to become a hero?"

Before I could answer any questions All Might called out. "Give her space. She's injured."

The reporters backed up a little but continued to ask questions. The medics quickly came and took me from All Might. They laid me on a stretcher and put me in the ambulance. I caught one more glance at Katsuki before they shut the door. I felt the ambulance drive away and people began hooking things up to me. I was so out of it that I didn't even realize that they gave me an IV. When we got to the hospital they rushed me to a room. I couldn't make out much of what they were saying but I heard someone say I was going into shock. I was in and out for the next few hours. All I remember is seeing Katsuki's face every time I woke up. I had no idea if it was real or not. When I fully came to, the room was empty and there was shouting outside my door. I could make out Katsuki's voice and his mother's.

"I'm not leaving till she wakes up!"

"That could take all night! You need to get home and sleep! You just survived a villain attack!"

"And so did she! She saved my life, if she hadn't been there I would be dead!"

"No, All Might saved your life. Without All Might you'd be dead!"

"All Might would have brought back a dead body if it weren't for her!"

There was absolute silence in the hall, then the door opened. I quickly closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep. I heard the person walk across the floor and sit in the chair by the bed. They took my hand and ran their finger across it.

"Hey, you idiot. Wake up soon, okay?" I recognized Katsuki's voice.

My heart sped up, and I heard the monitor respond.

"You're awake, aren't you?"

I opened my eyes. "How'd you know?" I asked sheepishly, laying my ears back.

"Well," he suddenly seemed embarrassed. "I held your hand and talked to you for hours but your heart rate never sped up like that."

"Oh," I looked down. "Hey, Katsuki, can we talk?"

"We are talking." He replied.

I laughed then winced. "No, like talk about what happened."

"I guess. What is it?" He met my gaze.

"I just really feel bad about, well... kissing you without your permission." I looked away, keeping my voice low.

"Oh," he cleared his throat. "It's–it's alright. I mean you saved my life, I can't be mad at you about that."

"But I took it, your first kiss, didn't I?" I looked up at him.

"That crap doesn't matter to me." He grumbled. "It's stupid. Love just gets in the way."

My eyes widened. "Oh, I see."

Suddenly my chest tightened, my breathing grew labored, my vision became spotty, my heart rate sped up. The voice in my head came back.

'See? You're unloveable. No one cares.'

Everything came crashing down at once. Itsuki's words when he broke up with me.

'You really thought I loved you? Idiot. You're weak. I can't have someone like that in my life.'

Anzu leaving. She left so abruptly.

'She couldn't stand you. You wouldn't leave her alone.'

I gripped my head. I knew that wasn't true, but I couldn't...a sob escaped my lips.

"Neko? Neko, are you okay?"

I couldn't say anything, everything hurt. I shook my head.

"Mom! Mom!" He sounded scared.

People rushed in, I heard people shouting. A cool cloth was suddenly pressed against my forehead and something was pressed against my lips.

"Drink." Someone said softly.

I did. A cool liquid ran down my throat, it cooled my entire body. I opened my eyes and saw Anzu.

"Anzu?" I asked.

"She's delirious." Someone said.

Anzu took the glass away and set it down. I heard people talking to my left. I looked over and saw Katsuki and his mother. It took me a moment to figure out who was who.

"What did you say to her?" Mitsuki asked sharply.

"Nothing! We were just talking and suddenly she started breathing hard." Katsuki defended.

"An anxiety attack like that doesn't just happen, something had to of triggered it. Now, what was it? What was the last thing you said to her?"

"She was apologizing about something that happened. And I told her it was fine." Katsuki shrugged it off.

"And what was she apologizing for?" Mitsuki glared at him.

"Nothing."

"Katsuki,"

"It's nothing."

"Katsuki, tell me this instant or so help me I'll—"

"She kissed me alright! She was apologizing for that. I told her it was fine, that it didn't matter to me. Love only gets in the way."

I felt my chest tighten again. The nurse beside me quickly grabbed my hand.

"Miss, it's alright, it's alright. Calm down."

"Katsuki, how could you?" Mitsuki's voice was low.

"I didn't do anything."

"Katsuki, you broke her heart, that's what you did. She likes you, she really does. And you just straight up told her that you don't want to love or need anyone."

Katsuki looked shocked. I closed my eyes tightly, trying to keep my tears at bay. It was more than that but neither of them knew that. The nurse stroked my hand which calmed me a little.

"She... loves me?" Katsuki asked quietly.

"I wouldn't call it that yet but yes, she likes you very much."

"Koneko?"

I opened my eyes, Katsuki was staring at me.

"Is that true?" His voice was soft and I found myself melting a little.

I didn't trust my voice so I just nodded. Katsuki cursed, his eyes wide. I wanted to hide, I tried to curl in on myself but it hurt too much to move.

"Neko, shit, I—"

He was cut off by the door opening loudly. I jolted to a sitting position, wincing and gasping at the sudden movement. The nurse grabbed me and carefully propped me up. I looked over and saw my family. My mother was still in her doctor's coat, Eiko was still in her uniform, and my father was still in his suit.

"Koneko!" Eiko exclaimed and rushed towards the bed. "Are you alright?"

"I—I don't know," I replied, my voice quivering slightly.

"She'll be fine." The nurse spoke up. "She has a few cracked ribs and burns, some bruising on her stomach and she will probably suffer from headaches for the next few days."

Eiko looked scared for a moment. "You got all that just to save him?" She glanced at Katsuki.

"Eiko," I started, trying to keep my voice steady. "It was worth it. Don't blame him, I'm the one who chose to run headfirst into the fight." I touched her arm.

"It's not fair!" She exclaimed.

"Eiko," Mom stepped forward.

"It's not fair! Look at him, he barely has a scratch on him. And you, you have cracked ribs, burns, bruises. Yet they are calling him a hero! A hero! And you, the true hero, are getting scolded for saving someone's life! It's not fair!"

Eiko's shouts rang around the room. We all stared at her.

"Eiko," I whispered. "It's okay, I'm fine really."

"But you're not," Katsuki whispered.

"Katsuki, I'll be okay."

"No!" His palms crackled. "Eiko's right…" he trailed off. "It's not fair. People are bashing you for running in and helping when you're the real hero."

I opened my mouth but nothing came out. Was I a hero? I didn't want him to die, not because it was the right thing but because I loved him. Was that considered heroic? The media didn't think so but Katsuki thought so, All Might thought so. I was so caught up in my thoughts that I didn't realize Mitsuki had ushered everyone out of the room until it was just Katsuki and I. I looked over at Katsuki. He didn't meet my gaze, shifting from one foot to the other. That was very unlike him.

"Katsuki?" I started.

"No, I need to say something first." He stopped me. "I—I'm sorry. I didn't know about your feelings and I caused you to have a panic attack. It was my fault, my stupid thoughts set you off—"

"Katsu," the nickname rolled off my tongue before I could think. "You didn't know about my feelings because I never told anyone. Your mother practically forced it out of me."

"Not even your sister?" He asked.

I laughed. "Gosh no, she would make fun of me 24/7."

"Neko, I guess this might be a good time to say… I don't hate you." He winced. "I mean I just, I can't hate you. I mean—" he growled. "Why are feelings so damn hard?"

He suddenly leaned down and kissed me, he was gentle but inexperienced. He pulled away a moment later.

"I can't explain it any better." He whispered. "It's just too hard."

"It's alright. I knew what I signed up for when I fell for you." I smiled, tail coming up to brush his hand. "So do you want to be my boyfriend?"

He scoffed. "You think you could handle me?" He paused. "Look, as much as I want to, I don't think we're ready. And I don't want you to get hurt again." He touched my cheek. "The moment the villain knew I cared about you, even a little bit, he targeted you. I can't let that happen again."

"Alright," I smirked, ears pointed forwards in confidence. "We'll see how long that lasts. You can't keep your hands off me."

"What?" He growled.

I grabbed the front of his shirt. "You heard me, Katsuki."

His breath ghosted across my lips. Only a few more inches. I closed the gap before he could pull away. His hands automatically found my waist. I pulled away.

"See? You can't keep your hands off me." I whispered against his lips.

He growled and pulled away. "Watch me! You just caught me off guard that's all!"

"Alright fine, how about a bet?" I grinned. "If you can keep your hands off me for say a year we won't date until you're the #1 hero. And if you can't, we start dating. Deal?" I held out my hand.

He smirked. "Deal." He shook my hand.

I smirked back. He paused and I raised a brow. He looked away and muttered something under his breath.

"What?" I ran my fingers across his hand before pulling him down. "So Katsu, are you ready to give in?" I murmured, my lips brushing his.

"Stop that!" He pulled away.

I shrugged. "I didn't say I couldn't touch you."

"You little cheater." He gasped. "I see what you're doing!"

I laughed. "I guess I've been caught." I winced and pulled my hand away to cradle my ribs.

"Neko?" Katsuki knelt by the bed. "Are you alright?"

The nurse suddenly came back. "I'm sorry to interrupt but I almost forgot her next dose of medicine."

Katsuki backed up. I tore my eyes away from him and looked at the nurse.

"Now this may make you sleepy." She messed with something on the IV bag.

"Oh," I murmured, watching the medicine drip in the tube. "Katsu,"

He stepped back over. "What?"

"You should go home and get some rest. You can come see me tomorrow. Also, tell my sister I'm fine." I reached out and touched his hand.

He glanced at it then nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow." He stood up and walked out the door.

I watched him leave, ignoring the pain in my chest. For some reason, it hurt to watch him go, even though I knew he'd be back tomorrow. My parents walked in after him.

"Koneko, what on earth possessed you to run into the fight like that?" Mom practically exploded.

"Ayumi, calm down please."

"I will not! Look at her now!"

"Mom, I'm fine." I tried to break them up.

"What was happening in your head?"

"Um..." I hesitated. How about 'Katsuki, Katsuki, Katsuki, must save Katsuki'? "Look I didn't intend to fight. I was only planning on watching but then I saw Katsuki and I needed to help him. I couldn't just let him die."

Mom sighed. "Koneko honey, sometimes you have to leave these things to the heroes."

"But I will be a hero!" I exclaimed.

"But you're not yet!"

"Please let's just calm down," Dad said, cutting us off.

As soon as he said calm down my body started to relax. I guess the medicine started to kick in cause I felt exhausted.

"Koneko?" Mom asked.

"It's just the medicine, ma'am." The nurse said. "It's fully kicked in. She'll be asleep for a few hours."

Mom walked over and rubbed my ears. I purred quietly. She smiled down at me.

"Okay, sleep well." She whispered.

"I'll be fine Mom." My words were slurred as I drifted off.


	5. Chapter 5

I woke up hours later in a fit of panic. I looked around the dimly lit hospital room but no one was around. A piece of white paper caught my eye, it was sitting on top of my phone, on a chair that was next to my bed. I shakily picked it up. On it was a note and a phone number.

Call me anytime you need.

I smiled and put the piece of paper back down. I didn't need a signature to know who it was from. At least now I could contact him. I laid back down and closed my eyes.

Black. Everything was black. Then I noticed the fire. The street was on fire. The sludge villain from earlier was on the rampage. Only this time the heroes were nowhere to be seen.

"Katsuki!" I called.

He didn't answer me. The villain didn't even stutter. I ran forwards and tried to claw at the villain. Every handful I scooped out twice as much returned.

"Neko,"

I clawed at the villain trying desperately to get to Katsuki. Nothing worked. I couldn't get to him. When the heroes finally arrived it was too late. We lost him.

I woke up screaming, grasping at thin air. I scrambled for my phone and the piece of paper. I quickly entered the number, double-checking that I had everything correct. It rang a few times before someone answered.

"Who the hell is calling me at 2 am?" Katsuki growled.

I practically sobbed in relief. "You're okay."

"Koneko? Of course, I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I had a nightmare. It felt so real. I thought I lost you."

Katsuki fell silent. My chest tightened when he didn't come back with a sharp remark.

"Did you..." I swallowed my fear. "Did you have a nightmare too?"

I heard him let out a shaky breath.

"Yeah,"

"The sludge villain?" I already knew the answer.

"Of course."

"Now what do we do?" I asked quietly.

"I could stay till you fall asleep." He suggested.

"Yeah, that could work." My voice cracked. "I don't know that I want to go back to sleep."

"Me either."

We sat in silence for a moment.

"We should at least try, shouldn't we?" I whispered.

"I guess so." He fell silent.

I stared around my hospital room, my chest tightened as visions from my dream flashed across my mind. I couldn't stop the sob from escaping my lips.

"Koneko?" He sounded scared.

"I–I'm okay, I think. Just a little scared, that's all." I whispered. "It's dark here and lonely."

"I could come over." I heard rustling.

"No, they wouldn't let you in. Besides the nurses come and check on me."

"Maybe tomorrow."

I raised a brow. "Oh, what's this? Are you planning to sleep with me?"

I heard a sharp intake of breath on his side.

"No! I meant like a sleepover, you know with our parent's permission."

I laughed and made a strangled sound.

"Hey, are you alright? No laughing, you'll hurt yourself even worse."

"I'm fine. Or I will be." I breathed. I heard the soft sound of footsteps coming towards the door. "Someone's coming." I stuffed the phone under the pillows.

A nurse walked in. "Oh, you're awake."

"Yeah, I just woke up." I glanced around the room.

"Your medicine must have worn off." She walked over and messed with something on the IV bag. "There you go, you should go back to sleep soon."

"Thanks," I smiled.

She hesitated a moment. "Are you okay? I was watching your monitor and your heart rate jumped. It's done that several times tonight."

"Oh," I looked down, ears flattening. "It's nothing, just nightmares. I'm okay now."

"That's good." The nurse smiled. "Just call if you need anything." She gestured to the remote.

"Okay." I nodded.

She gave me another smile then left. As soon as she was gone I scrambled for my phone.

"Hey, are you still there?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm guessing you got your next dose of medicine."

"Yeah, I did." I fiddled with the edge of the sheets. "Which means..."

"You'll fall asleep soon." He finished.

I nodded, forgetting he couldn't see me. We were both quiet for a moment. I yawned.

"Hey don't fall asleep on me."

I smiled, it was so different hearing him speak softly. "I'll try not to."

We fell silent again. He took a shaky breath.

"Hey Katsu, you should try to get some rest," I whispered.

"I guess so." There was more rustling.

"I'll stay on till I fall asleep, which won't be long."

"You don't have to, you know. I'll be fine on my own." He muttered.

"Of course you will." I smiled. "But what if I want you to stay on?"

"Then I'll stay."

I yawned. "Thanks, Katsu."

"Why do you keep calling me that?" He huffed.

"Because it's cute. You have a nickname for me." I replied.

"Fine. But don't you dare call me that in public."

"Okay, I won't. It'll just be between us." I laughed quietly.

"It better be." His voice lacked its normal venom.

I felt my eyelids begin to droop. My body felt heavy like I couldn't move. I sank back against the pillows, eyes closing. My phone tumbled out of my hand and onto the bed. I felt my body slowly slip into unconsciousness. The last thing I heard was Katsuki calling my name.

I woke up the next morning to soft voices. I could make out my mother's and someone else's, I couldn't place them. I opened my eyes, my whole body hurt like I had been hit by a truck. I groaned as memories of the previous day flooded my brain. One memory, in particular, came to mind. Katsuki had confessed. Was that a dream or was it real? Everything was a blur. The one thing I knew that was real was the pain. I should have gotten my next dose while I was asleep. So why did everything hurt?

"Mom?" I managed.

Mom came rushing over. "Hey sweetheart, how are you feeling?"

"Bad." I croaked. "Why does everything hurt?"

Mom glanced at the other person. "I guess we should put you back on your meds."

"You took me off?" I groaned. "Why?"

"We were trying to get you to heal naturally. But if you're in pain we'll put you back on."

A nurse walked over and messed with the IV. "There you go. It'll kick in soon."

"Will I fall asleep soon?" I asked. I didn't want to miss seeing Katsuki.

"No, we took that medicine off." Mom shook her head. "It worked a little too well. Your heart tried to stop."

My ears laid back. "It did?"

"Yes, the nurse said that the first half of the night your heart rate was skyrocketing. Then after she came and checked on you, it dropped too low. I was called in after that."

"I almost died?" The thought scared me.

"No, we had under surveillance. You wouldn't have died."

"But I could have. In any other circumstance, I would have."

Mom stroked my hair. "You're okay now. Don't worry about those things."

I nodded even though the thought was still there. I could have died.

"In other news." Mom started cheerfully. "You can go home today. And you're free from school till you're healed. Of course, you'll probably have homework."

"Izuku or Katsuki could bring it." I murmured. "Izuku! Wait, is he okay?! He ran into that fight too!"

"He's fine. I talked to his mother. He was concerned about you." Mom smiled. "He said something about still wanting to see your notebooks."

I sighed. "Yeah, we were supposed to meet up before the fight happened."

"Well if he wants he can come over later."

My phone buzzed beside me. I glanced over. I didn't recognize the number at first glance.

I'll be there soon

As I read the text it hit me. Katsuki. I didn't have him programmed in yet. I picked up my phone and entered a new contact. Cat-suki. I giggled, he wasn't going to like that. Mom looked over.

"What are you giggling about?"

I looked up. "Nothing."

"Okay." Mom went back to reading my report.

I scrolled through my phone as I waited for Katsuki to arrive. I had several messages from Izuku. I quickly replied.

Me:

Hey Izuku, don't worry about me. They're sending me home today. You can still come over and see the notebooks if you want.

A few moments later came the reply.

Izuku:

Really? Don't you need to rest?

Me:

I'm fine. Don't worry.

Izuku:

Okay, I'll see you later.

I looked up as the door opened. Katsuki walked in with his mother trailing close behind. He walked over to my bed.

"She insisted on coming." He muttered.

"It's a mother thing." I smiled.

"So uh how did you sleep?" He sat in the chair.

"Apparently too well." I laughed lightly.

"What happened?" Katsuki seemed worried.

"Well uh, apparently my heart tried to stop." I rubbed the back of my neck.

"What?" He stood up, gaining the attention of everyone else in the room. Glancing around he sat back down. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I mean they took me off of my meds for a little so I'm kinda sore."

"Neko, if you hadn't been hooked up you could have died."

My ears laid back. "I know."

We fell silent, the only noise was the heart monitor. I guess our mothers had left earlier.

"Hey Katsuki," I whispered. "Did you actually confess, or was that just a dream?"

Katsuki looked surprised. "You don't remember? Of course, I actually confessed."

I let out a sigh. "That's good. Sorry, everything's just a blur."

"You did hit your head pretty hard." He reached over and brushed my head.

I immediately leaned into his touch, purring quietly. He seemed surprised but continued to pet my hair. My purring grew louder.

"I didn't know you could purr."

"I'm a cat. Of course, I can." I practically melted.

"Got any other cat-like tendencies?" He slowed his scratching.

"Like I'll tell you." I scoffed.

"Fine, I'll just find out myself."

"Mmm, good luck. Izuku has no idea and he's been studying me for a couple of years now."

"Huh? Deku?" Katsuki growled. "He may have been watching you but he isn't as close to you as I am."

"True. But I won't give up my secrets so easily."

"Koneko," Mom walked back in.

Katsuki immediately pulled his hand away. I almost whined at the loss of contact.

"The doctor will is going to give you one last check-up and then you'll be free to go."

"Okay." I nodded.

Mom looked expectantly at Katsuki. He sighed and stood up.

"Yeah, yeah I'll leave." He brushed my hand as he left.

My heart skipped a beat and the monitor beeped. I silently cursed it, for once could my emotions be hidden? Mom glanced at me then at the door that Katsuki just disappeared through. Before she could interrogate me the doctor walked in.

"Alright Koneko," She started. "We need to go over a few things before we can send you home."

She started to give me a list of things to do and not to do. No exercise, try to eat only healthy foods and so on. I knew my mother would keep me in line so I didn't really listen.

"Try not to wear anything tight around your ribs. So no sports bras or anything like that. If possible try to avoid wearing bras."

I inhaled sharply. "But I can still wear bras, right?"

"Yes, but preferably loose ones."

I sighed, at least that wouldn't be awkward. The doctor went over the last few things then I was free to go. Well as soon as they unhooked me from everything. I swung my legs over the side of the bed. Just before I stood up Katsuki appeared at my side. I carefully stood up and took a step forward. I tripped over myself and would have landed on my face if Katsuki hadn't caught me. I sucked in a breath. Was my tail broken? Or could I just not walk? I flicked my tail experimentally. It didn't hurt but I wasn't sure.

"Are you okay?" Katsuki still had his hand against my back.

"I'm not sure." I turned to look at my tail. "Hey, mom?"

Mom looked up from where she was talking to the doctor. "Yes?"

"Is my tail okay?" I flicked it again.

She frowned. "I don't see why it wouldn't be. Do you think you hurt it?"

"I don't know but I can't walk."

"Hmm," Mom walked over and ran her hand down my tail. "I don't feel anything. Does it hurt?"

"No," a shiver ran down my spine.

"Then you probably just can't walk."

"Oh, I guess that's good?" I cocked my head. "I mean better than my tail being broken."

Katsuki wrapped my arm around his shoulders. I knew that was his way of saying that he'd be there for me. A nurse brought a wheelchair in and Katsuki helped me in. They brought me out to the car and helped me get in. My dad was already in the car, waiting for me. Mom had to stay at the hospital and work a little longer. Katsuki stayed behind and drove home with his mother. They met us at the house. Katsuki was at my side before the door was even fully open. He grabbed my hand and helped me out of the car.

"Thanks." I murmured as he helped me inside.

"Don't mention it." He helped me to my room.

I sat down on my bed, taking careful breaths. Katsuki looked around my room and I realized that this was his first time in my room. I flushed realizing that it wasn't very clean.

"Um sorry about the mess. It's uh been a busy couple of days." I glanced around.

"Makes sense." Katsuki looked back over at me. "What are you doing the rest of the day?"

"Well, nothing. Izuku is coming over this afternoon." I fiddled with my bedsheet.

"Deku?" Katsuki growled. "Why is that nerd coming?"

"Because, Katsuki, he is one of my friends. And he wants to look at my notebooks."

I gestured to my bookshelf.

He ran his hand along their spine. "Geez, how many do you have?"

"Uh, a lot? Four shelves full." I shrugged. "I have to know the quirk and what fighting style is best. I have to know their weakness and strengths. Their recoils and what happens if you overuse it. Or if a mutant quirk or not."

"That's a lot of information." He pulled out a notebook.

I recognized it instantly. "Wait! Don't open that—"

Too late. He opened it. I groaned and buried my face in my hands. I heard the rustling of pages as he flipped through the book.

"Is this…" he paused. "Is this all on me?"

I peeked between my fingers. "Yeah. I was fighting with you directly and was handling your quirk for myself so I have more information on you."

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He muttered something under his breath. If I had regular human ears I wouldn't have heard him. But he wasn't dealing with a normal human.

"You know you could just give up. I know you want to." I grinned, removing my hands from my face.

He looked surprised. "You heard?" He cursed. "You and your hearing. I'm not going to give up so easily."

"Fine. More of a challenge. That what I always liked about you, your determination."

He growled. "I swear if it weren't for that stupid bet I would kiss you senseless so you wouldn't have any breath left for your stupid remarks."

"Oh, so you want to kiss me?" I smirked.

He glared at me but didn't answer.

"I'll take that as a yes."

"If you weren't injured I would tackle you to the floor."

I placed a hand against my chest, faking hurt. "Just because I'm injured you're holding yourself back?"

"Of course." He lowered his voice. "I know well enough that you can handle yourself."

I was speechless. Katsuki saw me as an equal? I guess that makes sense. That would be the only way he accepted me. I was just about to say something when my dad walked in.

"I have some food for you if you want."

"Oh, thanks." I suddenly realized that I hadn't eaten since yesterday.

I managed to stand on my own and walk a few steps before I lost my balance. I grabbed the doorframe for support. Katsuki came to my side but I waved him away. I was going to do this on my own. I managed to get to the kitchen on my own and I was steadier. Dad had a plate of food and he set it down in front of me. I quickly finished it. Katsuki and I were just about to go back to my room when there was a knock on the front door.

"I'll get it." Katsuki stood up.

He disappeared and a moment later I heard the door open.

"Deku?"

"Kacchan?!" Izuku exclaimed. "What are you doing here? Or did I come to the wrong house?"

I sighed and managed to get up. I shakily walked over to the front door. "No, Izuku you're at the right house. Katsuki was just checking up on me."

"Oh uh, that's good." Izuku squeaked under Katsuki's gaze.

I swatted Katsuki's shoulder. "Leave him alone."

He growled and walked back inside. I gestured for Izuku to come inside. He hesitantly followed me inside. Katsuki was sitting on my bed, reading one of my notebooks. I walked over to my bookshelves and pulled down the several notebooks I had on Katsuki.

"Here you go. Did you bring any of yours?" I sat them all down on my desk.

"I brought a few." Izuku opened his bag and took out a few notebooks. "My collection is nothing like yours."

I rubbed the back of my head, ears flattening. "Yeah, well, when you have a quirk like mine you need to know all you can."

He nodded. "Yeah, I totally get that. I mean I've kinda studied you too. Your quirk is so cool and your fighting style is amazing. It's so unique."

"Thanks. I guess I've just picked up different things over the years." I could almost feel Katsuki fuming behind me. I carefully made my way over to the bed and sat down. "You can go through them if you want."

Izuku grinned. "Thanks!"

He sat down at my desk and started going over the notebooks. I leaned into Katsuki's side.

"You don't have to be jealous, you know? Izuku sees me as a friend nothing else." I stroked his arm with my tail.

"And you?" Katsuki refused to meet my gaze.

"Me?" My ears laid back. "You know where my feelings lie." I glanced at Izuku but he wasn't paying us any attention.

"Have you..." Katsuki swallowed. "Have you ever liked him?"

"At one point, yes. But it quickly became apparent that he didn't like me." I curled my tail around his arm. "Then I found you. I admired you from afar, then I actually met you. Honestly, I thought you were a jerk at first but it slowly became apparent that it was just a cover. A cover for a boy who wasn't sure what to do. But I saw you evolve. You became the best and you're still going."

Katsuki immediately looked over at Izuku but the boy still wasn't paying attention to us.

"You wouldn't believe how hard I'm resisting the urge to kiss you." He whispered.

"You can. Nothing's stopping you."

Katsuki scoffed. "You're kidding. Deku is literally sitting in front of us."

Izuku looked up at his name. "What?"

"Mind your own business Deku," Katsuki growled.

"Sorry, Kacchan." Izuku squeaked and looked away. He hesitated then looked back. "Sorry, I couldn't help but notice how close you two are."

"So what Deku?" Katsuki shifted but didn't move away from me.

"I was just wondering if you two were dating or something?" Izuku hid behind a notebook.

"What?!" Katsuki exploded... literally. His palms crackled with small explosions.

"Katsuki!" I stood up, wincing at the sudden movement. I grabbed his shoulder. "Calm down. It was a simple question."

Katsuki pulled away. "It's none of his business."

"It's not but he was just curious." I wrapped my tail around one of his hands.

He relaxed slightly. "Well, he can be curious somewhere else."

Izuku looked between us. "So..."

I quickly cut him off. "We are not dating. We're just friends. Training buddies, you could say."

Izuku looked intrigued. "How well do you do against him?"

"Well I say I can hold my own but that's just me," I smirked at Katsuki.

He just glared. "She's not terrible."

Izuku gasped. "That's a compliment Kacchan!"

"Shut up Deku!" Katsuki's palms cracked.

I stepped in front of the boys. "Okay, that's enough. Katsuki I'll be fine for a little. Izuku, take as many notebooks as you like."

"Neko, are you sure?" Katsuki looked hesitant.

"I'll be fine Katsuki. Go home. You need to rest too." I touched his shoulder.

He stared at me for a moment. "Fine. Only if Deku goes too."

I looked over at Izuku. "He will."

Izuku nodded quickly. "Yes, I'm sure Koneko needs rest."

I sighed. I would need to take a week long nap after dealing with these two. Izuku quickly put a few notebooks in his backpack.

"I'll see myself out. Bye." He gave me a smile then left.

Katsuki started to leave, I grabbed his hand.

"I'll ask my dad, you ask your parents."

He looked confused for a moment then nodded. "Okay."

I let his wrist go. "I'll see you later then."

"Yeah," he smiled then left too.

I sat down on my bed with a sigh, I was exhausted and it was barely noon. I stood back up and made my way to the living room.

"Hey Dad," I called.

Dad looked up from his spot on the couch. "What's up kitten?"

"Could Katsuki and I have a sleepover tonight?" I leaned on the back of the couch, tail flicking anxiously.

He thought it over for a moment. "I'll have to ask your mother but I'm okay with it. As long as it's fine with his parents."

"Okay, thanks." I smiled and walked back to my room.

I quickly texted Katsuki then laid down for some much needed rest.


	6. Chapter 6

Katsuki dropped his stuff off hours later. I was sitting on the kitchen counter, glaring at my sister. Eiko stuck her tongue out at me and continued eating her ice cream. Katsuki walked up next to me.

"What did she do to you?" He asked.

"I did nothing. I just brought ice cream home. You know to celebrate." Eiko grinned at me.

"Sure," I growled.

"I'm missing something here." Katsuki glanced between the two of us.

"I'm lactose intolerant. I can't have ice cream." I replied. "Normally it's special occasions only but she buys it whenever she's craving it then rubs it in my face."

"Oh, so no milk for you. I'll add that to the list of cat-like traits."

I looked at him. "How did you know that was a cat trait?"

He suddenly looked embarrassed. "I just guessed."

"You've been doing research!" I gasped.

"So what if I have." He growled.

I smirked. "You're interested in me."

He flushed then glared at me. "I'm just trying to learn your weaknesses. Nothing different than you're doing."

"Oh, so you're keeping a notebook on me now?"

"Shut up." He shoved me lightly.

"Hey watch it. I'm hurt remember."

He rolled his eyes. "That didn't hurt you what so ever."

I put a hand against my forehead. "Oh no, I've been found out."

"You two are so weird," Eiko said from the table.

"Shut up." Katsuki and I said.

"Fine, fine, so what's your plan for tonight?"

I shrugged. "Eat, watch a movie, sleep. Maybe I'll get him to put a face mask on." I looked over at Katsuki, batting my eyelashes.

"Never," he scoffed. "You will never get that stuff on me."

"Come on Katsuki, for me?" I pouted.

"No." He glared at me.

"Please," I gave him my version of puppy dog eyes.

"Just give into her already." Eiko groaned. "If you don't she'll keep bugging you all night which will bug me."

"I'm not going to just give in to her." He growled. "I already said no."

I sighed, sliding off the counter. "It was worth a shot."

I walked to my room, still a little unsteady on my feet. I heard Katsuki follow behind me. I plopped down on my bed with a sigh. Katsuki walked in and put his stuff in a corner.

"So what is the plan for tonight?"

"Like I said, eat, watch a movie, sleep." I shrugged. "Calm each other after nightmares. Normal sleepover stuff."

Katsuki scoffed. "I can tell you one of those things isn't normal. And it's not the nightmares."

I cocked my head to the side. "So what is it?"

"Sleep." He replied deadpan. "Who sleeps at a sleepover?"

I laughed then clutched my side. "True. But you have school in the morning."

Katsuki sighed. "Yeah back to that dump. You're lucky, you get to stay home."

"You call having several major injuries lucky?" I raised a brow at him.

"Fine, but you're still lucky." He sat next to me on the bed. "What now?"

I checked the time. 6:13. "We could order pizza."

"Sounds good to me." Katsuki shrugged.

"Mom!" I called.

Katsuki laughed. I paused for a moment, enjoying the sounds that spilled from his lips.

Mom appeared in the doorway. "Yes?"

"Can we have pizza for dinner?" I asked.

She sighed. "I guess. I didn't have a plan for dinner anyway."

"Yay!" I laid back on the bed.

"Do you want anything special on the pizza?" Mom asked.

"Ham, I at least want ham on the pizza," I replied.

"I'm good with whatever." Katsuki shrugged.

"Ooo get Hawaiian then." I grinned.

"No," Katsuki said.

"Why not?" I looked over at him.

"Pineapple doesn't belong on pizza."

"Uh yes, it does. It's one of the best things on pizza."

"No, it's disgusting. Its a fruit. It doesn't go on pizza."

"Well, tomato is technically a fruit and it's on pizza."

"But tomato isn't sweet. Pineapple is."

Mom cut us off. "Alright, alright, I'll get half a Hawaiian and half of whatever Katsuki wants."

"Meat lovers," Katsuki replied.

"Alright, half a Hawaiian and half a meat lovers." She smiled and left.

Katsuki leaned back. "We seriously need to talk about your taste."

I shrugged. "I like the sweetness on the pizza."

"It just doesn't belong." Katsuki made a face.

"Agree to disagree." I yawned. "I think it's good."

"And I don't."

And just like that, it went quiet. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Katsuki got up and walked away. I cracked my eye open and watched him flip through several notebooks. He paused on one page.

"I don't recognize this hero." He held up the notebook.

I sat up and looked at it. "Oh, Eraserhead? He's an underground hero, he doesn't make many appearances."

"Interesting." He went back to flipping through the book. "You have a lot on him."

"I did my research." I shrugged. "I really like his quirk. I study his fighting style. I've been trying to figure out how he uses his scarf. I'm thinking that I could use that in battle. Since without a quirk I'm basically useless."

"Have you had any luck?" Katsuki looked down, as if upset.

I shook my head. "No, not yet. I've been trying since I saw him on TV."

"How long ago was that?"

I thought about it. "I'm not sure. I was young, maybe 8."

"6 years. And no luck?"

"Nothing. Maybe it needs a special material." I laid back down. "I really want to meet him one day."

"You might."

I sat back up, a little too quickly. I winced, cradling my ribs. "How?"

"I heard a rumor that he teaches at UA. Along with All Might." Katsuki sat back at my side.

"If we get in, we could finally meet them!" I grinned.

"You mean when we get in." Katsuki corrected.

"Oh I know you'll get in but I might have some trouble." I leaned against his shoulder. "Do you think I can do it? Honestly?"

Katsuki stiffened. "I don't know. It all depends on what the entrance exam is. It's different every year."

"I'm nervous it's going be some sort of physical exam and if I'm not with you then I won't be able to do very well."

"I'm sure you'll do your best." His hand came to rest on my hip.

I closed my eyes. "I know you will."

We stayed there, quiet, and not moving. I felt my mind slipping away, I was falling asleep. I tried to stay awake but I was too tired and too comfortable. Then the next thing I heard was a gasp then a shout. I sat up, rubbing my eyes. I looked over at Katsuki. His cheeks were flushed.

"Katsu? What happened?" I yawned.

"Your sister." He muttered. "You fell asleep so I didn't move you but now your sister is telling your mom."

"Oh," I stood up. "I guess I'll go get her then."

I walked out of my room, I followed the sound of Eiko talking. She was upstairs in my parent's room.

"Mom, they were sleeping together!" Eiko exclaimed.

"No, I was asleep. Katsuki just didn't move me." I said from the doorway.

Eiko spun around. "But you were alone together."

"You and Kirishima have been alone together." I pointed out.

Eiko made a few strangled noises, looked between me and Mom, then left. I shrugged and followed her downstairs. I caught a whiff of pizza and my mouth watered. Katsuki was already in the kitchen wolfing down pizza. I slid into a seat next to him.

"Wow, couldn't even wait for me."

He shrugged. "I was hungry."

I grabbed a couple of slices of pizza, I took a couple of bites. "Mmm, so good. Pineapple on pizza is the best."

"What is wrong with you?" Katsuki wrinkled his nose.

I laughed, almost choking on my pizza. "Fine, I'll drop it."

"I'm surprised you don't like anchovies on pizza."

I make a face. "I don't like anchovies in general. Now tuna on pizza, that's a different story."

"Oh my gosh." Katsuki shoved me. "You are so weird."

"You're the one who decided to become friends and then fall for me." I took another bite of pizza. "So you're also weird."

He rolled his eyes. "Says the person who's been head over heels for two years."

"Hey!" I smacked his shoulder.

Eiko walked in. "What are you two love birds talking about?"

"You." I replied.

She stopped. "What?"

"Oh, you know just how you've been head over heels for Kiri for years," I smirked.

"I—you—what—" she sputtered. "Koneko!"

I shrugged. "Payback."

She glared at me, grabbed her pizza, and stalked off. Katsuki watched her go.

"Wow, you were right. She would tease you 24/7."

"Siblings. That's just how it goes."

We finished our pizza then took over the living room. Like everything else, we couldn't decide on a movie. I wanted to watch what Katsuki called a chick flic and he wanted to watch a horror movie. Finally, we decided on watching more than one movie. Katsuki groaned throughout my entire movie. He didn't know but some times I would catch him staring at me. Once my movie was done he put in his. I groaned, I hated horror movies.

"You better be prepared for screaming and being pounced on." I muttered.

He looked at me. "Don't worry. I'll be by your side. They don't scare me."

And he was right. He didn't budge the entire time. Meanwhile, I jumped at the slightest movement. I didn't let go of his hand the entire time. At one point I was curled up in his side, my face buried in his neck. That was the one time he moved. He wrapped his arm around me, holding me closer. I stayed by his side for the rest of the movie. After the movie was done I finally detached myself from him.

"No more scary movies." I shook my head. "I don't like them."

Katsuki stood up and stretched. "Fine, fine."

"Let's get ready for bed?" I suggested.

"Sure."

We headed to my room and grabbed our pajamas. I kicked Katsuki out of my room so I could change. After we both changed I pulled out my mask collection and a couple of headbands.

"No." Katsuki said instantly.

"Come on it's good for your skin." I pleaded.

"No, it looks stupid." Katsuki turned away.

"Please, no one wants a number one hero with acne." I pressed.

He glared at me. "Fine, but this doesn't leave this room."

"I swear." I grinned. I smeared the clay mask on his cheeks.

"It's cold!" He yelped.

I laughed. "Of course."

"Hey, kids…" Mom opened the door.

Katsuki and I froze. Mom laughed and pulled out her phone.

"Mitsuki needs to see this."

"Mom!" I exclaimed. "Get out!"

Katsuki was practically livid. His palms crackled with explosions. I almost immediately put my hands on top of his. I had his quirk copied so it didn't hurt...much.

"Mom, please leave." I said.

"Alright, alright." She left without closing the door behind her.

I groaned. "Mom!"

I didn't bother getting up. I just kicked it close.

"I swear if that picture gets to my mother, I will murder someone." Katsuki growled.

I put more of the mask on his cheeks. "It's fine. It's not like you had a full mask on."

"That doesn't matter!"

"Oh, hush. You're taking care of your skin. That's nothing to be ashamed of." I finished putting the mask on him. "Now do you want to do me or am I doing myself?"

"I'll put it on you. Gives me an excuse to smear stuff on your face." He took the bottle from me.

"You don't need a lot. Just enough to cover my face." I grabbed a headband.

"Yeah, yeah." He squirted some on his hand and smeared it on my face.

I closed my eyes as he spread it around my face. After a minute he pulled back.

"There."

I opened my eyes. "And now we match."

"What do we do now?" He asked.

I put the mask bottle back away. "Now we wait for it to dry."

Katsuki laid down on the floor. "And what? Do nothing?"

"It's a time to relax." I replied, resting my head on his stomach.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm relaxing." I closed my eyes.

"You're laying on me."

"Thank you for pointing out the obvious."

"Why?"

"Because unlike you, I enjoy physical contact. It's just a part of my quirk. So it's a part of me."

"So it's another cat-like trait?"

"In a way."

He reached over and scratched behind my ear. "I read that a cat's purr can help tissue regeneration."

"Yes," I felt the purr build up in my throat. "So?"

"So what spot will get you to purr instantly?" His hand ran through my hair.

"Tail. Also certain spots on my back and right behind my ear." I curled my tail around his leg. "But my tail is extremely sensitive."

"Oh. Oh!"

I opened my eyes and looked up at Katsuki. He was looking away from me and his ears were red. I laughed.

"I guess you figured it out."

"So don't mess with your tail. Got it." Katsuki still refused to look at me.

"I mean you can if you want. I don't mind." I ran my tail along his arms. "Especially since it's you."

He sat up abruptly, knocking me off him.

"What is wrong with you?" His ears were still bright red.

I laughed again. "I'm just messing with you. Maybe one day you can mess with it but not now."

"Oh, geez." He shoved me. "You are crazy."

"Yeah, well I'm friends with you. What'd you expect?" I grinned.

Katsuki changed the subject. "Is it time to take these things off? It itches."

I touched my cheek. "Yeah, we can take them off now."

I grabbed a couple of washcloths, threw one at him and walked to the bathroom. I got the cloth wet and started rubbing the mask off. Katsuki walked in and started doing the same. A moment later Eiko appeared.

"Wow, you actually did get a mask on him."

I grinned. "Yep. No one can resist me."

"Anyway, Mom says it's time to go to bed." Eiko leaned against the door. "Dad says you two can't sleep in the same bed like you and Izuku did."

I glanced at Katsuki. "Wasn't planning on it."

Eiko nodded and left. I quickly washed the last of the mask off and headed to my room. Katsuki was right behind me.

"What did she mean by that?"

I sighed, sitting on my bed. "During some of our first sleepovers, Izuku and I would sleep in the same bed. We stopped after the first few times. Most of the time it was an accident, we would stay up talking about heroes then we would fall asleep. There was nothing more to it."

Katsuki was silent as he laid down his sleeping bag. I watched him carefully, he wasn't looking at me.

"I don't know what I could say to make it any better," I whispered. "You know where my feelings lie. Izuku is my friend, nothing more. And he never was."

Katsuki nodded and laid down. "Goodnight Neko."

"Goodnight Katsu," I laid down and turned off the lamp.

I woke up gasping for air, Katsuki was at my side in a second.

"Hey, hey are you alright?"

I shook my head and let out a strangled sob. He pulled me close, gently cradling me.

"It was just a nightmare, it wasn't real." He whispered.

"It felt so real." I sobbed.

"I know, I know." He ran his fingers through my hair. "I'm here. You're here. The villain is gone."

I buried my face in his neck. I was getting his shirt wet with tears and snot but he didn't care. One of his hands came to rest on my lower back, rubbing slow circles. My breathing began to slow. _'He's not dead. He's right here.' _ I told myself. Eventually, my tears stopped and I could breathe normally again. Katsuki removed his hands but I held him tightly.

"Don't let go," I whispered.

"Okay," Katsuki carefully laid back down.

I leaned my head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. I closed my eyes and drifted back to sleep.

I woke up the next morning still laying on Katsuki's chest. I heard birds chirping outside and light was streaming through the window. I checked the time. 7:27. I groaned and got up. Katsuki had to get to school. I shook Katsuki lightly.

"Katsu?"

He groaned and opened his eyes. "What?"

"You need to get ready for school." I ran my hand through his hair.

He groaned again and sat up. He reached out and touched my cheek. "How did you sleep?"

"Better after I was with you." I ran my hand down his chest. "I think your heartbeat helped."

"Interesting." He scratched behind my ear.

I started purring, he smiled. I closed my eyes and leaned into his touch. I felt myself slipping back to sleep when he pulled away. I opened my eyes.

"I have to go to school remember?" He stood up.

I groaned and stood up too. "Come back tonight? You can bring me my homework."

"Yeah, I'll be back tonight." He grabbed his school uniform and left.

I sat on my bed, waiting for him to come back. Katsuki walked back in and shoved his clothes in his bag.

"I'll just leave my stuff here since I'm coming back."

I hopped off the bed. "That's fine. Let's go get breakfast."

After breakfast Katsuki and Eiko left for school, Mom and Dad left for work so I was alone. I watched a couple of movies on TV, worked on a couple more hero entries, made cookies, took a nap, and just stared at the ceiling. Finally, after what felt like days, someone opened the door. I jumped up off the couch and ran to the front door. Katsuki was taking his shoes off.

"Katsu, you're back!" I grinned.

"I said I would." He handed me his bag. "You're homework is in there."

"Aw, no hello kiss." I joked.

"Don't tempt me." He growled, he walked into the kitchen.

"I made cookies want some?" I followed him.

"Sure." He grabbed one off the rack and took a bite. "This is not bad."

I smiled. "I'm not much of a cooker but I can bake."

I walked to my room and put his bag on my desk. Katsuki came in a moment later and we started on homework. Eiko came home with Kirishima and went upstairs. Mom and Dad came home and started on dinner. After homework, Katsuki and I played some video games. He beat me at almost everything. After several games, we were called to dinner. Mom and Dad seemed surprised to see Katsuki again but didn't comment. When dinner was done Katsuki and I headed outside down to the park. I showed him the treehouse I found one day. From there we watched the sunset. When it was dark enough we climbed back down. We laid in the grass staring up at the stars. Katsuki pulled out a laser pointer and started pointing out different stars and constellations. At one point he pointed the laser down on the ground and I had to resist the urge to pounce on it. He glanced at me.

"So chasing lasers is another cat-like trait." He pointed on the ground next to me.

"Katsuki, don't." My hands were already moving, trying to grab the red dot.

He laughed and moved the laser around. I sat up and chased it. He moved it around and around until I was finally able to resist it and pounce on him instead. I grabbed the laser out of his hands.

"Please don't do that again," I said breathlessly.

"Okay, okay, I won't." He smirked. "Tonight at least."

"Katsuki!" I exclaimed. My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out. "It's my mom. She says we need to come back."

"Alright, let's go." He stood up and offered me his hand.

I took it and he pulled me up. We were so close, our chests were pressed up against each other. I blushed and looked down, backing away quickly.

"Um, we should go." My voice was quiet. Normally I was confident in these situations but being alone with Katsuki at night made me a little timid.

We walked back home, quiet the entire time. When we got home Mom sent us straight to bed since Katsuki had school in the morning. We went to bed without much fuss. After Mom and Dad went to bed I snuck into Katsuki's sleeping bag. He seemed surprised but didn't say anything. I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

The next day was the same as the day before, Katsuki got up and left for school. I did nothing all day until Katsuki came back home. We did our homework and the rest of my family came back home. Unfortunately, Mom said that Katsuki had to go back to his house. I tried to reason with her but she was firm. Katsuki gathered his stuff.

"You can call me if you need." He whispered. "I'll try to answer."

I smiled. "Thanks."

He returned the smile and left. I closed the door and headed to the dining room. After dinner, I went and just relaxed in my room. I fell asleep earlier than normal. I woke up several times during the night and every time it was the same thing over and over. Katsuki was gone.

I woke up screaming again for what felt like the 50th time that night. I looked around the room, fear tightening my chest. I pulled my knees up to my chest, pressing my face against them. Katsuki was alive, I knew that but it never stopped the dreams. They kept coming and coming. The only time they stopped was when Katsuki was laying by my side. He had already stayed a few nights. Any more and we'd probably raise suspicion if we hadn't already. My hands were trembling as I picked up my phone. I could call him but he had school in the morning. He said that I could call him but I didn't want to disturb him. I jumped as my phone started to ring. I answered it almost without thinking.

"Hey, Neko," Katsuki's voice was soft.

"Katsu? Why are you calling?" I asked.

"You didn't call me. I just wanted to make sure that you were okay."

I took a shaky breath. "I'm okay. I just didn't want to bother you."

"I told you to call me if you needed to."

"I know. But I didn't want to wake you up."

"I've been awake for most of the night."

I laid back down. "You should get some sleep."

"So should you, you're still healing."

"I will if you will."

"Fine." He huffed.

I closed my eyes. "I'll stay on till you fall asleep."

"Or till you fall asleep." His voice sounded tired.

I hummed, already feeling tired. I heard Katsuki's breathing steady.

"Katsu?"

No answer. He was already asleep. I smiled and let my body fall back into unconsciousness.

I walked into school several days later. I sat down at my desk and looked around, nobody was minding their own business. I sighed, they all must have heard about what happened. Or at least saw the news. Izuku was the first to approach me.

"Izuku!" I smiled brightly.

"Are you okay? I mean, are you well enough to come to school?" He seemed a little nervous. Which made sense since Katsuki was glaring daggers at him.

"I'm fine. My ribs still hurt but that's to be expected. I have a doctor's note saying I can skip P.E." I shrugged wincing slightly.

"You idiot." Katsuki walked up. "You should have stayed home. It takes several weeks for cracked ribs to heal."

"I'm fine as long as I don't do physical activities," I replied. "I've been doing this much at home."

"Whatever." Katsuki sat at his desk.

"Katsuki, I'm fine. Really." I smiled at him. _'Physically anyway.' _I thought.

He eyed me as if he heard my thoughts. He pointed to his head then did a thumbs up with a questioning look on his face. I shook my head, no use lying to him, he'd find out anyway.

"Meet me after class." He whispered.

I nodded and turned my attention to the front of the class as the teacher walked in.

"Good morning class. It's good to see everyone's here. Welcome back, Miss Chino."

The entire class looked over at me. I gave a shy wave and flushed.

"I think the whole class has heard about your heroic attempt to save Bakugou." The teacher said.

"Attempt?" Katsuki growled under his breath.

I almost reached for him but kept to myself.

"Now tell us, why did you really run into the fight? Fame? Recognition?" The teacher raised her eyebrow.

"It was to save my friend." I frowned a little. "It wasn't for fame. I could care less about that. But I couldn't just let my friend die. Anyone else would have done the same if it was their friend."

"I guess so. Now let's begin..."

The bell rang and everyone started packing up. I shoved my books in my bag and met Katsuki outside of the classroom. He jerked his head as if to say _follow me. _I nodded and followed him up to the roof. The rooftop was empty except for a freshman couple. Katsuki quick scared them off with a couple of explosions. He leaned against the wire fence.

"What's going on in your head?"

"Lots of things. You. What I could have done better, how could I have freed you sooner, how could I have protected myself?" I shrugged. "A lot of what-ifs. Some..." I glanced at him. "Are darker than others."

"You mean if I died." He said it so calmly.

"Yeah, or me. What would have happened then?" I bit my lip.

"Neko, don't think about that. It's not going to happen. I won't ever let you die."

"I know, but it doesn't help. I've tried everything, nothing has calmed me except...you." I met his gaze. "I haven't had a good night's sleep since you left."

Katsuki sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Honestly, neither have I."

"So what do we do? We can't constantly be sleeping at each other's houses." I leaned against the fence.

"No, but we could do that once a month. And the other times we could facetime or call each other."

I thought about that. "Yeah, that could work."

We were silent for a moment. I sighed and straightened.

"We should get to class."

"Yeah," Katsuki straightened too, he looked at me and for a moment I thought he might kiss me. Instead, he wrapped me in a hug. "I'm not going anywhere, Neko. I won't abandon you."

And with that confession he let me go and disappeared down the stairs. I stood there frozen for a moment then smiled. At least that was one thing I knew for certain. Katsuki would stick by my side no matter what.


	7. Chapter 7

Over the next 10 months, Katsuki and I worked on our relationship and our bodies. We trained on most days of the week and meet up once a month for a sleepover. My nightmares were down to a bare minimum but were still there. As we both got stronger I was able to sleep without calling him or sleeping beside him. I saw how strong Katsuki was and realized he could take care of himself no matter what happened. I got stronger too, I was able to take Katsuki down at least once every few training sessions. I noticed that even Izuku was training, building up more muscle than I thought was possible to get on a small body like his. Finally, the day arrived, the UA exams. Katsuki and I made our way to UA. I spotted a familiar green-haired boy in front of us.

"Stupid Deku," Katsuki growled.

Izuku turned around. "Kacchan, Koneko."

"Get out of my way now before I set you on fire." Katsuki threatened.

"Oh hey good morning! Let's just both do our best out there, okay? Good luck!" Izuku panicked.

I nudged Katsuki's shoulder. "Don't be so mean. Good luck Izuku!"

"I think that's the kid who withstood the sludge villain." One kid whispered. "His name's Bakugou right?"

"Yeah, he's the real deal. And that girl beside him is the one who tried to save him." Another kid replied.

"Oh yeah her, she got gravely injured. She's here? I guess she's pretty good."

Katsuki tensed slightly. I put my hand on his shoulder. We followed the signs into a big amphitheater. We were all seated and the lights turned off as the stage lights turned on.

"What's up UA candidates? Thanks for tuning in to me, your school DJ. Come on and let me hear ya!" Present Mic called.

No one said anything.

"Keeping mellow huh?" Mic shrugged. "That's fine, I'll skip straight to the main show. Let's talk about this practical exam is going to go down. Are you ready? Yeah!"

There was still silence. Well except for Izuku who was fanboying next to me.

"Oh my goodness, it's the Voice Hero Present Mic. So cool! I listen to his radio show every day of the week. It's so crazy nuts that all the UA teachers are pro heroes." Izuku was practically radiating light.

"Will you shut up," Katsuki muttered.

"Like your application said, today you rocking boys and girls will be out there conducting ten-minute mock battles in super hip urban settings. After I drop the mic here you'll head to your specified battle centers, sound good?"

I looked at my card, Battle Center C.

"I see they're splitting us up so we can't work with any of our friends." Katsuki glanced at mine and Izuku's cards.

"Yeah, you're right. Our examinee numbers are one after the other but we're assigned to different battle centers." Izuku said.

"Get your eyes off my card," Katsuki growled. "Damn, I was really looking forward to crushing you."

I rested my head on my hand. "And I was looking forward to having I quirk I knew how to use."

"Okay, okay, let's check out your targets. There's three types of faux villains in every battle center. You'll earn points based on their level of difficulty. So better choose wisely. Your goal in this trial is to use your quirk to raise your score by shredding these faux villains like a mid-song guitar solo. But check it, make sure you're keeping thing heroic. Attacking the other examinees is a UA no-no, ya dig?"

"Excuse me sir but I have a question." Someone called.

"Hit me!" Mic called.

"On the printout, you listed four types of villains, not three. With all respect, if this is an error on official UA material, it is shameful. We are exemplary students. We expect the best from Japan's most notable school. A mistake such as this won't do." A boy with blue hair and glasses turned to us. "Additionally, you with the unkempt hair. You've been muttering this entire time. Stop that. If you can't bother to take this seriously, leave. You're distracting the rest of us."

Izuku covered his mouth. "Sorry."

"Hey, wait a minute." I stood up, tail twitching angrily. "Just because he's excited doesn't mean he's not taking this seriously. You are taking this way too seriously. So what if they made a mistake. If anything it isn't a mistake and you're just jumping to conclusions."

"Alright, alright, examinee number 7111, thanks for calling in with your request."

I glared at the boy and sat back down. Izuku mumbled his thanks but didn't take his hands off his mouth.

"The fourth villain is worth zero points. It's just an obstacle we'll be throwing in your way. There's one in every battle center. Think of it as a hurdle you should try to avoid. It's not that it can't be beaten but there's kinda no point. I recommend that my listeners try to ignore it and focus on the ones at the top of the charts."

"Thank you very much." The blue-haired boy bowed. "Please continue."

"That's all I got for you today, I'll sign off with a little present. A sample of our school motto, as General Napoleon Bonaparte once laid down, "A true hero is one who overcomes life misfortunes." Mmm hmm, now that's a tasty bite. You ready to go beyond?" Mic grinned. "Let's hear a Plus Ultra! Good luck! Hope you practiced hitting more than just books."

I grinned and grabbed my bag. "Let's do our best!"

"Whatever." Katsuki stood up.

Everyone changed into their gym clothes. I met Katsuki outside where we were going to takes buses to our battle centers. I grabbed Katsuki's hand and pulled him away.

"Neko," Katsuki growled.

"I just need your quirk." I pulled him around the building.

"Use someone else's." He pulled his hand away.

"But I've been training with yours." I protested.

"What about that other quirk, Harding or whatever. Use that one."

"I don't know if Kirishima is going to be here and if he is I don't know where he is." I grabbed his hand again and pushed him against the wall. "Just let me use yours." Before he could respond I kissed him. It was a short kiss, just long enough for me to power up my quirk. "There, that's all I need."

Katsuki wrestled out of my grip. "Then let me go."

I backed away and tested out the quirk. It felt right in my hands. We made our way back to our buses. I touched my lips, they were tingling. That was the first time I had kissed Katsuki since the hospital. I boarded the bus, as soon as everyone was onboard the bus left. It was a short ride to the battle center. We unloaded and gathered in front of the gates. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I needed to focus. Someone put a hand on my shoulder. I opened my eyes and looked over at the person.

"Kirishima?!" I gaped at him. "You're here?"

"Yeah, I guess they didn't know we knew each other." Kirishima rubbed the back of his neck.

"They must not of." I shrugged. "Well, it's good to see a friendly face. I swear most of these people have been giving me nasty looks."

"It must be because of the sludge villain." He looked around. "They're trying to make you think that they hate you when in reality they're just scared. You're pretty powerful."

"When I have the right quirk," I muttered.

"Oh yeah! Do you have a quirk?"

"Yep. Stole it from Katsuki just before I left." I grinned and let off a few explosions.

Kirishima hardened on instinct. "You must be really close to him."

"No, just training buddies. I give him a challenge, he helps me get stronger. I've taken your quirk against him a few times. I would love to see you two spar."

"Well, maybe one day I'll meet him."

"Yeah," I looked around. "I wonder when this is going to start."

"Right let's start! Get moving! There are no countdowns in real battles! Run, run, run listeners! You're wasting air time here!"

"Now apparently!" Kirishima ran off.

I dashed through the doors as soon as they opened. I attacked the first robot villains I saw, no matter their points. I kept count, 2, 5, 6, 9, 12, 15, 17. I veered off to the right, chasing after more robots. 20, 21, 23, 25, 28. I glanced behind me and saw only a few people following me. 29, 31, 33. By my calculations, it had been about 7 minutes. I searched for more robots. Suddenly the ground started shaking. Another robot appeared, this one bigger than the buildings. I panicked like everyone and started to run, but someone caught my eye. A girl probably my age was still trying to get a few villains that were alive. I almost didn't see her because she was invisible but my cat-like eyes picked up on her movement. I thought at first she would be okay, but then the robot hit one of the buildings. My eyes widened in horror as I realized that the building would fall on top of her.

"Hey look out!" I screamed.

The girl didn't notice. I looked around, no one else was paying her any mind. They were all too focused on getting out go there. So I did the one thing I could think of, I ran toward her. I grabbed her and threw her with an explosion. She cleared the building but I was still in the way. I knew I couldn't run so I laid on my back and pointed my palms toward the falling building. As it got closer I fired off a large explosion I had seen Katsuki use several times. It turned the concrete to rubble. My arms hurt like mad and I knew I probably tore a few muscles. I fired off several more smaller explosions to clear the rubble from my path. It semi-worked. I still got buried. I laid there for a moment as the building settled all around me. I took serval deep breaths before coughing from all the dust in the air. I put my hands in front of my face and fired off more small explosions. I could hear someone on the other side calling my name. It must have been Kirishima. I was able to create a small hole so I could stand up. I continued to create a tunnel with small explosions until I saw light. I braced myself for one more large explosion and blasted the rest of the concrete to rubble.

"Koneko!"

I pulled myself out of the hole. "I'm okay, I'm okay."

Kirishima pulled me into a hug. "I thought you died!"

"Kiri, let me go! We're still in the middle of an exam." I pulled away.

"But you almost died."

"I'm fine!"

I started to run to find more robots but I stopped when I saw the girl. She was still sitting in the same spot I threw her.

"Hey, you're okay. Come on, there's still time." I grabbed her arm.

"You saved me." She sounded like she was in awe.

"Just one minute left!"

I looked up. "Come on," I helped her up and ran off to find more villains.

I only found two more one pointers before Mic called out.

"Times up!"

I practically collapsed to the ground. Kirishima came running up.

"So how did you do?"

"Well with those two that should be 35." I sighed. "That might be enough to get me through."

"You did pretty well." Kirishima sat beside me.

"Um,"

Kiri and I looked up, the invisible girl was standing in front of us.

"I just wanted to thank you." She said. "I mean, you could have been hurt but you still risked your life and your score for me."

I shrugged. "It's what a hero would do."

"Yeah but still!" The girl protested. "Um, are you okay? You didn't get hurt, right?"

"I mean, other than the fact that I overused my quirk, I'm perfectly fine." I smiled. "What about you? I threw you pretty far, I'm sure you've probably got a burn and several scratches."

"Oh, I'll be okay. They're all fairly minor."

Someone walked up. "Are any of you injured?"

I looked up, the school nurse, Recovery Girl was standing in front of us. "Well, I've got a few torn muscles but other than that I'm fine."

"Well let me give you a kiss." She leaned down and kissed my cheek.

Instantly I felt my pain disappear but I also felt really tired. "Thanks."

"You better get home and get some rest." Recovery Girl smiled.

"Okay," I nodded. I stood up and offered my hand to Kirishima.

"Thanks," he took it and I helped him up.

I stretched and made my way to the front gates. Everyone boarded the bus again and we drove back to the school. I spotted Katsuki and ran over to him. I tackled him in a hug.

"Neko!" Katsuki shoved me off.

"How'd you do?" I grinned.

"77. I probably beat everyone here." Katsuki scoffed.

"Wow, 77. I only got 35." I sighed. "I guess you're getting in."

"Who says you won't?"

Katsuki and I gathered our stuff.

"Well, I didn't get many points." I shrugged. "I stopped to rescue a girl. But it cost me precious time."

"That sounds like something you would do."

I was going to say something else but as that moment someone was brought in on a stretcher.

"Izuku!" I gasped, I rushed over to his side.

"Koneko?" Izuku opened his eyes.

"Oh gosh, Izuku, what did you do?" I gingerly touched his arm.

"I—I saved a girl," Izuku said quietly. "But I didn't get any points."

"Oh Izuku, I think you're a hero. You risked your score to save someone." I brushed his hair away from his eyes. "I can call your mother, she'll come pick you up." I pulled out my phone and pressed call on Inko's number. She picked up quickly.

"Koneko! How's Izuku? Is he okay?"

"He's okay, but he needs rest. Can you come pick him up?" I touched Izuku's hand.

"Of course. I'll be there soon." Inko hung up.

I put my phone back in my pocket. "Okay, your mom will be here soon. Get some rest Izuku."

"Thanks," Izuku closed his eyes.

I smiled and turned back to Katsuki. "Are you ready to go?"

"Been ready." Katsuki turned and walked off.

I quickly followed him. "Okay, sorry, I had to make sure he would be okay."

"You care too much." Katsuki flicked my ear.

"And you don't care enough." I poked him in the arm.

He winced. "Hey,"

"Are you okay? Did you overuse your quirk? You know you could have gotten Recovery Girl to heal you." I stepped in front of him.

"I'm fine. Besides you can just heal me." He looked away.

"Oh, yeah, I just need Eiko or my mom's quirk."

We walked to the train station in silence. The train was about to leave when we got there. Katsuki and I had to squeeze in a one-person spot. I tried to keep my distance but as the train moved I fell into him. He wrapped an arm around me to steady me.

"Sorry," I looked down.

"It's fine." He muttered.

I rested my head on his shoulder. He tensed slightly but didn't move me. I closed my eyes and tried not to fall asleep. Before long I left Katsuki shaking me.

"Hey, Neko, we're here."

I opened my eyes. "Did I fall asleep?"

"Yeah, idiot. We almost missed our stop." Katsuki helped me off the train.

"Sorry," I yawned. "I must have been more tired than I thought."

"I'll say, you were out." He scoffed.

"Sorry," I looked down, kicking the pavement. "Um, are you coming to my house or are you going straight to your house?"

"I'll come over, you've got to heal me remember?" Katsuki started walking away.

"I thought you were joking about that," I mumbled and followed him.

We walked to my house in silence. I fumbled for my keys until Katsuki grabbed them and unlocked the door. Eiko appeared in front of us.

"So how'd you do?" She grinned. "Also what's he doing here?"

"Well—"

Katsuki cut me off. "She did great, I did better. I'm here because your sister invited me and that's all."

He pushed passed her and walked to my room. I sighed and followed him brushing Eiko as I passed.

"We get the results in a week," I told her. "We'll know then."

I walked into my room, Katsuki was already laying on my bed.

"Well, you certainly made yourself comfortable." I sat my stuff down.

He sat up. "Did you get her quirk?"

"Yeah," I sat on the bed next to him.

I grabbed his arm, massaging the muscles. I pressed kisses along his forearm. Once I was done with his right arm I picked up his left and repeated the process. Katsuki stayed quiet the entire time. When I was finished Katsuki rubbed his forearms.

"So, do they feel better?" I cocked my head.

"Yeah, thanks." His voice was soft. He stood up. "I should go."

"Already?" I stood up too.

"We did just finish an exam. We should get some rest." He picked up his bag.

"Oh yeah, I'll see you tomorrow, right? For training?"

"Yeah,"

I walked him to the door. "See you tomorrow."

Katsuki nodded and left. I smiled and watched him go.

A week later Eiko came rushing in with a letter.

"Koneko! Your results are here!"

I grabbed the envelope and pushed Eiko out of my room. I shut my door and sat down at my desk. After a moment of staring at the envelope, I finally opened it. I pulled out a letter and a small projector. I sat the projector down and turned it on. It turned on and the first thing I saw was All Might.

"I am here as a projection!"

"All Might?" I cocked my head.

"Yes, I am here. Now I didn't come to this town just to fight villains, you're looking at UA's newest faculty member."

"Sweet." I grinned.

"So you passed the written test and got 35 combat points on the practical exam. Unfortunately, that's not enough on its own. That why we have rescue points. A panel of judges award points for heroic acts. Koneko Chino, 41 rescue points!"

On the screen, my name and points appeared. 35 combat points, 41 rescue points. My eyes filled with tears when I saw my number. I was in second place with 76 points.

"Welcome, Koneko, you're now part of the hero academia!" All Might held out his hand.

"I made it, I actually made it." I smiled. I picked up the letter. It was basically what the videos said but on paper. I grabbed my phone and pressed the button on favorites. He picked up after a few rings.

"So? How'd you do?" Katsuki sounded bored.

"I made it Katsu, I made it. I got 76 points, I was awarded points for rescuing the girl." Tears filled my eyes again. "We did it Katsuki, we made it to UA."


	8. Chapter 8

Before we knew it April had arrived. Izuku and I started training together, I still trained with Katsuki too. Finally, it was our first day at UA. Katsuki and I left early so that we would make it to class on time. As soon as we walked into the Class 1-A classroom we were surrounded by people. Katsuki growled and pushed his way through but I got stuck behind. A pink girl her hand in front of my face.

"I'm Mina Ashido."

I shook her hand. "Koneko Chino."

"You know, you look familiar." She leaned closer. "Have we met before?"

"I don't think so." I took a step back.

"Hey, Koneko!" Someone wrapped their arm around my shoulders.

I looked up, a boy with spiky red hair stood next to me. I cocked my head to the side.

"Kirishima?"

"Yeah," he grinned. "How's Eiko?"

"Good. But um has she seen your hair?" I reached up and touched one of the spikes.

"Hey!" He pulled away. "And no she hasn't seen my hair. Do you think she'll like it?"

"I think so. But I can't speak for her." I shrugged his arm off. "She's going be pretty excited to hear that you're in the same class as me."'And jealous.'

"Hang on, are you talking about Eiko? Eiko Chino?" Mina asked.

"Yeah, she's my sister. My twin to be exact." I replied.

"You have a twin? That awesome!" Mina exclaimed.

"They're nothing alike," Kirishima commented.

"I think it would be cool to have a twin." Mina sighed.

"It's not as cool as you think," I told her.

"Excuse me, you're blocking the doorway."

I turned to see the blue-haired boy with glasses. "Ugh, it's you."

"Oh, it's you." He bowed. "Please forgive me. I was a little harsh when I spoke to your friend."

I wanted to scoff and turn away but I didn't. I waved him off. "It's fine. I'm just used to jumping to his defense. He doesn't defend himself." I made my way into the classroom.

"Um excuse me,"

I turned to the voice but didn't see anyone. Then I noticed a floating uniform. "Oh, hey, it's you."

"My name is Tooru Hagakure. I just wanted to say thank you again." Hagakure said.

"I told you. It's no problem. Besides, by saving you I got rescue points. That put me in second place." I shrugged.

"Oh wow, second place." Hagakure sighed. "That's really good."

"So this is the girl you saved?"

I looked up. "Hey, Katsuki. Yeah, this is Tooru Hagakure."

"You're the kid from the sludge villain." Hagakure gasped. "So that means, you're Koneko Chino! The girl you saved him!"

I rubbed the back of my neck. "People still remember that? Yeah, that's me."

"Wow, you're even better than I thought."

"Thanks." I smiled.

"Come on. I saved you a desk." Katsuki grabbed my wrist.

"Katsuki!" I yelped. "Um bye Hagakure!"

"Bye!" She waved.

Katsuki drug me to a pair of desks. "That one's yours."

"You didn't have to drag me away." I sat my bag down at the third desk.

Katsuki sat down at the second and put his feet on the desk. "So what. She was too chipper for my tastes."

"Take your feet off that desk now!"

"Huh?" Katsuki looked up at the blue-haired boy.

"It's the first day and you're already disrespecting this academy but scuffing school property, you cretan."

"You're kidding me, right? Your old school put a stick up your ass, or were you born with it?"

The boy faltered. "Let's start over, I'm Tenya Iida from the Somei Private Academy."

"Somei, huh? You must think you're better than me." Katsuki leaned forwards. "I'm going to have fun tearing you a new one."

Iida gasped. "You would threaten me? Your own classmate? Are you sure you're in the right place?"

Katsuki grunted and looked away. I glanced up and that was when I saw Izuku in the doorway. Iida and Katsuki saw him too.

"It's him."

Everyone turned towards the door. Izuku froze and looked away.

"Uh hi!"

"Good morning! My name is Teyna Iida—"

"Yeah, I know." Izuku cut him off. "I'm Izuku Midoriya, it's super nice to meet you."

"Midoriya, you realized there was something more to the practical exam, didn't you? You must be very perceptive. And I completely misjudged you. I admit, as a student, you're far superior to me."

"Hey, I recognize that messed up hair! Falling boy!" A girl called, I couldn't see her.

I looked down at Katsuki. "Who knew Izuku made it to this class?"

Katsuki grunted and looked away. I moved his feet and sat on his desk.

"Come on Katsuki, you had the highest score you did great." I rested my hand on his leg.

"Whatever," Katsuki glared at Izuku.

Someone appeared in the doorway. "It took eight seconds before you all shut up. That's not gonna work." He took off his sleeping bag. "Time is precious, rational students would understand that."

I froze, it took me a moment to recognize him but I did. Eraserhead, the erasure hero. I couldn't help the grin on my face. I loved his quirk.

"Hello, I'm Shota Aizawa. Your teacher." He pulled something from his sleeping bag. "Right, let's get to it. Put these on and head outside."

I sat there for a few more seconds staring at Aizawa. He was going to be our teacher? I might see his quirk in real life. I could find out the downside to his power.

"Excuse me, you shouldn't sit on the desks." Iida suddenly stood before me.

I looked up at him and raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

He sputtered. "It's not the correct use of the desks."

I shrugged and hopped off the desk. We were each given a gym uniform and shown where the locker rooms were. Everyone changed then headed outside.

"We're going to be having a quirk assessment test."

"What? A quirk assessment test?" Everyone repeated.

"But orientation. We're gonna miss it." A brown-haired girl said.

"If you really want to make the big leagues you can't waste time on pointless ceremonies. Here at UA, we're not tethered to traditions. That means I get to run my class however I see fit."

Everyone seemed nervous, I took a deep breath I knew it was going to be different. Anzu had told me that much.

"You've been taking standardized tests most of your lives but you've never gotten to use your quirks in physical exams before. The country is still trying to pretend we're all created equal by not letting those with the most power excel. It's not rational. One day the ministry of education will learn." Aizawa paused then turned to Katsuki. "Bakugou, you managed to get the most points on the entrance exam. What was your farthest distance throw with a softball when you were in junior high?"

"67 meters, I think," Katsuki replied.

"Right, try doing it with your quirk."

Katsuki grinned and took the softball, he stepped into the circle.

"Anything goes just stay in the circle. Go on, you're wasting our time."

Katsuki stretched. "Alright, man you asked for it." He wound up and threw the ball with a large blast. "Die!"

The ball disappeared into the clouds.

"All of you need to know your maximum capabilities. It's the most rational way of figuring out your potential as a pro hero." Aizawa held up a screen.

"705 meters?" I gasped.

"Whoa, 705 meters? Are you kidding me?" A yellow-haired boy asked.

"I wanna go! That looks like fun!" Mina exclaimed.

"This is what I'm talking about, using our quirks as much as we want." A black-haired boy said.

"So this looks fun, huh?" Aizawa asked. "You have three years here to become a hero. You think it's all going to be games and playtime? Idiots. Today you'll compete in 8 physical tests to gauge your potential. Whoever comes in last has none and will be expelled immediately."

"Huh!" Everyone gasped.

"Like I said I get to decide how this class runs. Understand? If that's a problem you can head home right now."

"You can't send one of us home! I mean we just got here! Even if it wasn't the first day that isn't fair." The brown-haired girl exclaimed.

"Oh, and you think natural disasters are? Or power-hungry villains? Or catastrophic accidents that wipe out whole cities? No, the world is full of unfairness, its a hero's job to try to combat that unfairness. If you wanna be a pro you're gonna have to push yourself to the brink. For the next three years, UA will throw one terrible hardship after another at you. So go beyond, plus ultra style. Show me it's no mistake that you're here."

I took a deep breath. I can do this, I won't get expelled like Anzu did. I will become a hero.

"Now then, we're just wasting time by talking. Let the games begin."

The first test was the 50-meter dash. I studied the group of students. Iida's seemed like the best quirk but I had no idea how to use it. I should just stick with Katsuki's. I walked over to him and slipped a hand around his waist.

"Neko," he hissed.

"I'm just borrowing your quirk."

"Runners on your mark. Ready?" The shot fired.

I took a running start then used my explosions to blast myself across the rest of the way.

"4.42 seconds." The machine said.

I grinned so close to Katsuki's time. Everyone else finished their runs then it was time for the second test. Grip strength. I decided to not use a quirk, just my regular power. 60kg, much better than before. My training with Katsuki was paying off.

"Whoa, you hit 540kg?! You're such a beast." A black-haired boy exclaimed.

The next test was standing long jump. I borrowed the frog girl's power. With one jump, I made it across. I grinned, it was nice having this many quirks around me. Next was repeated side steps. No one was very good at this. Then it was the ball throw. I went after the brunette. When she threw the ball it was gone. Aizawa held up the screen.

"Infinity?" Everyone exclaimed.

I knew which quirk I was going to use.

"That's insane. How is that even possible?" A blond boy asked.

I walked over to the girl. "Good job." I touched her shoulder. Aizawa handed me a new ball. I touched it and instantly felt it try to leave my hands. I threw the ball and it disappeared from view. Aizawa held up the screen.

"Infinity again?" Everyone gasped.

I walked back over to Katsuki's side.

"The others feel like your cheating." He said.

"But I'm not," I replied. "I'm just using my quirk, like everyone else."

"But they don't know what your quirk is."

I frowned and turned away. Izuku was up next.

"If Midoriya doesn't shape up soon he's the one going home," Iida said.

"Huh? Of course, he is. He's a quirkless loser." Katsuki growled.

"He has a quirk. Did you not hear about he did in the entrance exam?" Iida replied.

"Huh?" Katsuki glanced at me.

"Izuku doesn't have a quirk." I stepped in. "I've never been able to copy one from him."

I looked back over at Izuku just as he threw the ball. It didn't go far.

"46 meters." A machine called out.

"Hey, what gives? I was trying to use it just now." Izuku mumbled.

"I erased your quirk." Aizawa's hair was up along with his scarf. "The judges for this exam were not rational enough. Someone like you should never be allowed to enroll at this school."

"Wait, you did what to my? Wait, those goggles, I know you. You can look at someone and cancel out their powers. The erasure hero, Eraserhead!"

"You didn't know?" I muttered. "Geez Izuku."

"You're not ready. You don't have control over your power. Were you planning to break your bones again? Counting on some else to save your useless body?"

"No, that's not what I was trying to do!"

Aizawa used his scarf to pull Izuku closer. "No matter what your intentions are, you would be nothing more than a liability in battle. You have the same reckless passion as another overzealous hero I know. One who saved a thousand people by himself and became a legend. But even with that drive, you're worthless if you can only throw a single punch before breaking down. Sorry Midoriya, with your power there's no way you can become a hero." He deactivated his quirk. "I've returned your impractical quirk. Take your final throw. Hurry and get it over with."

"I wonder if our teacher gave him some advice?" Iida mused.

"Probably told him to start packing," Katsuki replied.

"You guys didn't hear?" I asked.

"No, we don't all have your ears." Katsuki scoffed.

"Oh," I looked back at Izuku.

Izuku hesitated for a little, he looked up with a determined look. He threw the ball but this time with a huge burst of speed.

"What?" I exclaimed. "That's not— How did he—"

"Mr. Aizawa," Izuku clenched his fist. "You see, I'm still standing."

"This kid." Aizawa grinned.

"His finger's broken." I murmured.

"He threw it over 700 meters!" A blond boy exclaimed.

"Nice, he's finally showing us his true power." The infinity girl yelled.

"His finger appears to be broken now," Iida said. "Just like in the exam. This quirk is very odd."

"It wasn't a very pretty throw." The French boy said.

Katsuki, on the other hand, was just as shocked as I was. Katsuki growled and fired off a few explosions.

"Hey Deku, you bastard, tell me how you did that or you're dead!" Katsuki yelled, running towards Izuku.

"Katsuki!" I called.

Aizawa activated his quirk and caught Katsuki before he could get to Izuku.

"What? Why the hell is your damn scarf so strong?" Katsuki struggled against it.

"Because it's a capture weapon, made of carbon fiber and a special metal alloy. Stand down. You'd be wise to avoid making me use my quirk so much. It gives me serious dry eye."

I suddenly wished I had my notebook with me. That was two pieces of information right there.

"You're wasting my time now." He deactivated his quirk. "Whoever's next can step up."

Izuku quickly made his way around Katsuki and ran back over to us.

"Ouch is your finger okay?" Infinity girl asked.

"Sure," Izuku replied.

I walked over to Katsuki. "Hey, are you okay?"

He growled and pushed me away. I watched him go back over to the group. Our next tests were sit-ups, toe touches, and long-distance run. I copied Iida's quirk for the last one. It was difficult to master and it kind of hurt but I eventually got the hang of it. Finally, we finished the exams.

"Alright, time to give you your results. I've ranked you all from best to worse. You probably have a good idea of your standing already. I'll just pull up the whole list, it's not worth going over each individual score." Aizawa pulled up the list.

I scanned the list. I was third, right before Katsuki. I frowned, I guess I would have to do better if I wanted to be first. I looked at the bottom name, Izuku Midoriya. My ears flattened against my head.

"And I was lying no one's going home." Aizawa grinned. "That was just a rational deception to make sure you gave it your all in the tests."

"I'm surprised the rest of you didn't figure that out. I'm sorry I guess I probably should have said something." The black-haired girl said.

'That doesn't make any sense. He expelled Anzu so why did he keep all of us? Especially Izuku, after what he said.' I thought.

"That was pretty nerve-racking huh?" The black hair boy said.

"Nah, I'm always down for a challenge," Kirishima replied.

Katsuki just huffed and turned away.

"That's it we're done for the day. Pick up a syllabus in the classroom and read it over before tomorrow morning." Aizawa started to walk away. "Midoriya, take this and go have the old lady fix you up." He handed Izuku and piece of paper. "Things are going to be tougher tomorrow when your actual training begins. Make sure you're prepared."

I groaned. "I could have done better."

"What do you mean?" Kirishima asked. "You did great!"

"I should have gotten first place. I have 18 quirks to choose from and yet I got 3rd." I slumped my head on Katsuki's shoulder.

"Get off," Katsuki growled but didn't move.

"Why?" I moaned. "I'm tired."

"Neko." He hissed.

"Katsu." I sang.

"Koneko." he shoved me off.

I stumbled and almost fell. "Ouch, Katsuki, that hurt."

Kirishima laughed then glanced between us. "What's the relationship here?"

"Just friends," I replied with a smile.

"Friends?" Katsuki scoffed. "You're just an annoying leech."

"Katsu, you don't mean that." I pretended to be offended.

"Whatever." He stomped off in the direction of the locker rooms.

"Oh come on, you're just mad cause I was in third!" I called.

He flipped me off. I shrugged and walked to the girl's locker room. The infinity girl was the first to approach me.

"So um how did you get my quirk?" She asked.

"Oh, my quirk is copy. I can copy a person's quirk by touching them." I replied.

"So you can borrow anyone's power?" The black-haired girl asked.

"Yeah, but the strength and time depend on how intimately I touch them." I touched Mina's hand, my skin turned a light shade of pink. "So with a brush of a hand, it's weaker."

I let some of the acid drip onto the bench. It sizzled then stopped, leaving a small indent on the bench.

"Whoa, that's so cool." Infinity girl said.

"Really?" I looked up. "Most people think I'm cheating or something."

"No, you're power is awesome!" Infinity girl held out her hand. "I'm Ochaco Uraraka."

"Koneko Chino." I shook her hand.

"I'm Momo Yaoyorozu." The pretty black-haired girl held out her hand too.

"It's nice to meet you." I grinned and shook her hand. "You got in on recommendations right?"

"That's right." Yaoyorozu nodded.

I looked over at the four remaining girls. "Well I know Mina and Hagakure, but what are your names?"

"Kyoka Jirou." The girl with the earphone jacks said.

"Tsuyu Asui. You can call me Tsu." The frog girl said.

"Nice to meet you all. I'm Koneko Chino. You can all call me Koneko." I smiled at them all.

"I think it's so cute that you have cat ears and a tail!" Hagakure exclaimed.

"Oh yeah, that's from my mother's side. My grandmother had a cat quirk. It's just been passed down from her." I touched my ears.

I turned to my locker and grabbed my uniform. I quickly changed clothes.

"So your quirk allows you to copy any quirk?" Yaoyorozu asked.

I looked up as I put my clothes in my bag. "Yeah, I can copy any quirk, even if it's a mutation. Those are painful." I winced. "My cousin can only copy certain quirks. Sometimes I think he got the better end of the deal."

"What do you mean?"

"Well he can only have a quirk for five minutes but he has it at full strength. Me, on the other hand, I can have any quirk but the strength and time depend on the touch." I started walking to the classroom

"I see." Yaoyorozu followed me. "I think your quirk is amazing."

"Thanks, yours is cool too."

"Oh this," she created a Russian doll. "It's alright, but I'd much rather have any power I wanted."

"Come on, you can have anything!" I looked over at her. "Besides, it's hard having a copy quirk. I get the recoils of the quirk I copy. Think about this, you have one power you can work with and strengthen meanwhile I don't. I can't strengthen something that isn't there."

We made it to the classroom and grabbed our syllabus.

"I guess you have a point," Yaoyorozu said.

"All I'm saying is be happy with what you have. Don't wish for something you don't have or you lose track of what you do." I spotted Katsuki in the hallway. "Hey, Katsuki!"

Katsuki looked up. I grinned and ran over.

"Bye Yaoyorozu!"

"Goodbye Koneko!" Yaoyorozu waved.

"So," I looked over at Katsuki. "Are you still bitter that I placed ahead of you?"

He glared at me. I nudged him with my shoulder.

"Come on, Katsu, don't stay mad at me forever." I stroked his arm with my tail. "Please," I looked up at him with wide eyes.

"Don't give me your puppy dog eyes." He growled.

"They are not puppy dog eyes. If anything they're kitten eyes." I rolled my eyes at him.

"Puppy, kitten, same thing. They're both the spawn of an animal."

"Excuse me, cats are far superior to dogs."

"Oh yeah, how so?"

"Well, for one thing, cats can take care of themselves. They're smart and they don't constantly need attention."

"Well, I think you missed out on that part."

"Hey!" I smacked his shoulder. "I don't need attention."

"You are one of the most neediest people I know." Katsuki scoffed.

"I am not!"

"You are too."

"Katsu, you're so mean." I pouted.

"I'm just telling the truth." He shrugged.

We fell silent as we waited for the train. Just before it got there Izuku, Idia and Uraraka showed up.

"Oh Kacchan, Koneko." Izuku seemed surprised.

"Hey Izuku, how's your finger?" I waved.

"Oh um, it's good. Recovery Girl patched me up." Izuku shifted uneasily.

I glanced behind me and saw Katsuki glaring at Izuku. "Katsuki," I nudged him. "Stop glaring." I turned back to Izuku. "So when did you get a quirk?"

Izuku quickly looked away. "Well um, apparently I was a late bloomer."

I opened my mouth to press him but the train arrived. Izuku quickly said goodbye to his friends and rushed onto the train. I followed Katsuki on to the train. The doors closed and I looked up at Katsuki.

"What do you think? About his quirk."

"I hate it. He's always been a quirkless loser. He's always been behind me. Someone who I could crush." Katsuki glared at Izuku.

"Don't be so mean." I looked over at Izuku. "He's not telling us something. I don't think that's his parent's powers. And I've never heard of a late bloomer."

"He told me that someone special to him told him that he could become a hero. And now he's taken those words to heart. Damn nerd." Katsuki growled.

"Something doesn't add up." I mused.

The train stopped and we all got off. I watched Izuku walk away. Maybe one day I would figure out that boy. But just not today.


	9. Chapter 9

The next day when I walked into class I went straight to Aizawa. He looked up from his papers and gave me a bored stare.

"Can I help you?"

"Well, I was wondering if I could get your autograph?" I dug my notebook out of my bag. "I was also wondering if you could teach me how to use your capture weapon?"

Aizawa looked at the notebook in my hand. "No,"

"What?" I blinked, tail tucking between my legs. "But sir—"

"Until I can see potential in you, I won't give you private lessons." Aizawa turned back to his papers.

"Of course." I started to put my notebook away.

"But…" Aizawa held his hand out. "I will sign your notebook."

"Thank you!" I handed the notebook to him.

He flipped through until he found a blank page. "You have a lot of notes."

"Well, this notebook is all about you. I've been studying you since I first saw you. I've been trying to figure out your capture weapon since then too." I looked away, ears back in a sheepish manner.

He handed the notebook back. "Like I said until I see potential I won't be giving private lessons."

"Yes sir, I understand." I took the notebook back and bowed. I walked over to my desk.

"What was that all about?" Katsuki asked.

"He signed my notebook." I grinned.

"And?"

"Well I asked him about lessons but he said he needed to see potential first."

Katsuki grunted. "Makes sense."

The bell rang and we all sat down, ready for our second day at UA.

* * *

Before I knew it, it was time for Hero Basic Training. We were all waiting in the classroom waiting for our teacher.

"I am here…" All Might appeared in the doorway. "Coming through the door like a hero!"

Everyone started talking at once.

"Welcome to the most important class at UA High. Think of it as Heroing 101. Here you will learn the basics of being a pro and what it means to fight in the name of good. Let's get into it. Today's lesson will pull no punches!" All Might pulled out a card that said battle.

"Fight training," Katsuki said.

"Real combat?" Izuku sounded scared.

"But one of the keys of being a hero is…looking good!" All Might pointed to the wall, which started moving. "These were designed for you based on your quirk registration forms and the request you sent in before school started."

I cheered. Our costumes.

"Get yourselves suited up and meet me at training ground beta."

"Yes, sir!" We all said.

We all grabbed our costumes and headed to the locker rooms. My hero costume was similar to my normal day to day outfit. Halter crop top, jean shorts, fishnet gloves, ribbons around my feet and calves. But I also included a mask, ribbons along my entire arm, ribbons across my stomach, and a long ribbon tied in my hair. After we all got our costumes on we headed to the training ground. I looked around at everyone's costumes. They all looked amazing! I walked over to Katsuki. He looked good in his black and orange costume. We had designed our costumes together but his looked so much better in real life.

"You look good." I touched the grenades on his arm. "Think these will work?"

"They better," Katsuki growled, he looked me up and down. "You don't look terrible yourself."

"Thanks, Katsu," I smiled.

We walked out into the light of the training ground.

"They say that clothes make the pros, young ladies and gentlemen. And behold you are the proof." All Might stood in front of us. "Take this to heart, from now on you are all…heroes in training! Now shall we get started, you bunch of newbies?"

Izuku came running up, I grinned when I saw his outfit. It was so cute. He had little bunny ears and a mask that resembled All Might's smile.

"Now that you're ready, it's time for combat training."

"Sir," Iida raised his hand. "This is the fake city from our entrance exam, does that mean we'll be conducting urban battles again?"

"Not quite." All Might held up two fingers. "I'm going to move you two steps ahead. Most of the villain fights you see on the news take place outside. However, statistically speaking, run-ins with the most dastardly evildoers take place indoors. Think about it, backroom deals, home invasions, secret underground lairs. Truly intelligent criminals stay hidden in the shadows. For this training exercise, you'll be split into teams of good guys and bad guys and fight 2 on 2 indoor battles."

"Isn't this a little advanced?" Tsu asked.

"The best training is what you get on the battlefield." All Might declared. "But remember you can't just punch a robot this time. You're dealing with actual people now."

I nudged Katsuki. "So no killing anyone."

"Shut up," he hissed.

"Sir, will you be the one deciding who wins?" Yaoyorozu asked.

"How much can we hurt the other team?" Katsuki questioned.

"Do we need to worry about the losers getting expelled like earlier?" Uraraka fidgeted.

"Will you be splitting us up based on chance or comparative skill?" Iida raised his hand again.

"Can we choose our teammates?" I spoke up.

"I wasn't finished talking." All Might muttered. "Listen up, the situation is this, the villains have hidden a nuclear missile somewhere in their hideout. The heroes must try to foil their plans."

"So like any hero movie." I murmured.

"To do that, the good guys either have to catch the evildoers or recover the weapon. Likewise, the bad guys succeed if they protect their payload or capture the heroes." All Might pulled out a box. "Time's limited and we'll choose teams by drawing lots."

"Isn't there a better way?" Iida jumped in.

"Think about it, pros often have to team up with heroes from other agencies on the spot. So maybe that's the reason we're seeing that here." Izuku chimed in.

"Yes, I see. Like a random series of events. Excuse my rudeness." Iida bowed.

"No sweat! Let's draw!"

The lots were drawn and I was with Yaoyorozu. I made my way to her.

"So we're a team."

"Yes, I'm happy to work with you." She smiled.

"Same here." I smiled back.

"I declared that the first teams to fight will be…" All Might pulled out two balls. "These guys!"

Teams A and D. Izuku and Uraraka and Katsuki and Iida.

"Team A will be the heroes, Team D will be the villains. Everyone else can head to the monitoring room to watch."

"Yes, sir." We called.

"Good luck Katsu," I kissed his cheek and left.

"Hey!" Katsuki called after me.

I smirked and ran over to Yaoyorozu. We made our way to the monitoring room.

"So who do you think we'll be up against?" I asked Yaoyorozu.

"I'm not sure, it could be anyone." Yaoyorozu looked around.

"Okay, I guess this is a better question. What quirk should I use?" I glanced around, tail flicking side to side. "I'm really good with Katsuki's and Kirishima's. I've never really used anyone else's before."

"Katsuki?" She looked confused. "Oh, Bakugou. His quirk would be good for up-close fighting."

"So is Kirishima's." I agreed. "Maybe I get a long-ranged attack. Like… Kaminari! Or maybe Todoroki."

"Those might be good, but do you know how to use them?" She asked.

"Well, no…but I could learn!" I grinned. "That's what we're here for! To learn new things and strengthen our powers!"

"I like your enthusiasm." She smiled back.

"Alright, let's begin indoor combat training. Team A and Team D your time starts now!" All Might called into the microphone. "Pay attention kids, think about what you would do."

We watched as Izuku and Uraraka made their way into the building through the window. They carefully made their way around the building, watching for anyone. I kept my eye on Katsuki who was on patrol. I watched helplessly as Katsuki aimed an explosion at Izuku's head, destroying half of his mask.

"Sneak attack Bakugou? What kind of man pulls cheap crap like that?" Kirishima exclaimed.

"It's a viable strategy, he's playing the part, acting like a true villain would." All Might said.

I glanced around. No one knew Katsuki well enough. He wasn't playing the part. He really did want to hurt Izuku.

"It didn't work, Midoriya dodged it." Mina pointed out.

"Look there he goes," Kaminari said.

Katsuki ran to Izuku but Izuku grabbed Katsuki's right arm and threw Katsuki down. I winced, that hurt I knew it. Katsuki got back up and faced Izuku. Izuku was shaking as Katsuki let off a few explosions. Katsuki suddenly put two fingers up to his ear and said something.

"Hey, who's Bakugou talking to?" Kirishima asked. "I'm not hearing anything, can we get any sound with this video?"

"He's got a radio in his ear so he can talk to his partner." All Might pointed to the device in his own ear. "I gave it to him before the match started. Along with a map of the building. Also this," he held a white roll of tape. "A roll of capture tape. Wrapping this around your opponent means you've apprehended them and they're out for the rest of the game."

"So there's a fifteen-minute time limit and the good guys have no idea what floor the nuclear bomb hidden is on, right?" Mina asked.

"Correct," All Might nodded.

"Then the heroes are clearly at a disadvantage here, a big one." Mina pointed out.

"Real pros have to outwit villains on a daily basis." All Might replied. "That's life. Even when the odds aren't in our favor, we fight. All together…"

"Let's hear a Plus Ultra!" Everyone yelled.

"Monsieur, he's on the move." The French boy said.

We all turned back to the screen. Katsuki launched himself at Izuku, landing a kick. Uraraka ran in the opposite direction. Izuku tried to wrap something around Katsuki's leg. Katsuki swung again and missed Izuku.

"The little guy's really good."

"He's holding his own and he hasn't even used his quirk yet."

Katsuki readied himself for another attack. Izuku ran off. Katsuki followed him but lost him after a few turns.

"That guy has some real anger issues. It's kinda scary." Kaminari said.

"He's not that bad deep down," I replied.

"And how would you know?" Kaminari looked over at me.

"I've known Katsuki for years now." I shrugged. "Yeah he comes across as mean but he's a softie under all that."

"I don't think he'd like you talking about him like that." Kirishima glanced at me.

I shrugged again and looked back at the screen. "He can deal with me how he wants."

Katsuki ran through room after room. Izuku was hiding around a corner. Uraraka was running through the building trying to find the weapon. When she finally found the weapon for some reason she started laughing and gave her position away. I looked back to the other screen. Izuku had stood up. I saw Katsuki standing at the other end of the hall. I wanted to yell at Izuku and tell him that Katsuki was behind him. Katsuki's gauntlet flashed red. Izuku turned around and faced Katsuki. Katsuki aimed his gauntlet at Izuku.

"He wouldn't!" I gasped, tucking my tail between my legs and flattening my ears.

"What?" Yaoyorozu turned to me. "What is it?"

"We designed those gauntlets together. It stores up his sweat to create a large explosion." I put my hand to my mouth. "I never expected him to use it on a person, even Izuku."

"Young Bakugou, don't do it!" All Might called. "You'll kill him."

But it was too late, Katsuki pulled the pin. The explosion shook the building and the monitoring room.

"Oh wow, this is nuts!" Kirishima yelled.

"Come in, come in Midoriya." All Might called into the mic.

The smoke cleared and I saw Izuku laying on the floor. Katsuki started walking towards him as his other gauntlet flashed. I was so focused on Katsuki and Izuku that I didn't even pay attention to Uraraka and Iida.

"Sir, isn't this getting out of hand?" Kirishima asked. "That Bakugou is acting really crazy. He's gonna kill him."

"Not so." All Might picked the mic back up. "Bakugou, use that stored up power again and I'll stop this fight. Your team will lose. To employ such a strong attack indoors is inviting the destruction of the stronghold you should be protecting. That's a poor strategy, whether you're a hero or a villain. The penalty will be a massive loss of points."

Katsuki looked upset. He screamed then launched himself at Izuku. Izuku braced himself for the attack. It looked like Katsuki was going to attack head-on but at the last moment launched himself up and over, hitting Izuku in the back with an explosion. Everyone gasped.

"What was that move?" Kirishima exclaimed.

"He doesn't come off as a guy with a strategy but he's actually quite intelligent."

Everyone looked over at Todoroki.

"What are you talk about?" Kirishima asked.

"He changed his trajectory while in mid-air, using a blast that doubled as a smokescreen. Very clever."

"An attack like that requires an extreme amount of precision. He had to calculate the physics and demonstrate control over his quirk." Yaoyorozu added.

Kaminari sighed. "Ugh Bakugou is uber-talented, I hate it."

I returned my attention to the screen. Katsuki hit Izuku with a right hook, hitting him right on the elbow, most likely breaking it if not then definitely bruising it. Katsuki grabbed his arm and spun him around, throwing him to the ground. Izuku hit the ground so hard he bounced.

"This is hard to watch, all he has to do is wrap tape around him not kill him!" Mina exclaimed.

"Bakugou's certainly attacking like a villain."

Kaminari sighed. "I thought Midoriya was pretty amazing at the start of the fight. But he's completely outmatched in terms of combat power. Not to mention Bakugou seems like a natural at all this stuff."

Izuku managed to get up and started running away.

"He's running away," Mina said.

"Not very manly but he doesn't have a choice. He's outgunned. Unless he's got some kind of plan, it's possible." Kirishima mused.

Izuku backed himself into a corner. Katsuki started walking towards him. Izuku got upset and started yelling. I put a hand over my mouth as they lunged at each other.

"They're going to kill each other!" Kirishima yelled. "Sir!"

"Both of you stop!" All Might finally yelled.

Izuku yelled something that made All Might stop. I looked over to the other screen. Uraraka grabbed the pillar closest to her. I watched as Izuku changed his attack at the last moment and shot his power upwards. Uraraka used the pillar and the debris to her advantage. She made herself float and landed on the weapon.

"She did it!" Mina grinned.

I returned my focus to Katsuki and Izuku. I gasped. Izuku used his own body to block the blast. One arm was burned and one was broken. Tears filled my eyes as Izuku collapsed to the ground.

"You did it." All Might whispered. "The Hero team wins!"

There was murmuring all around me. I bit my lip, I was happy for Izuku sure but Katsuki wasn't going to take it well.

"What a weird way for this to end. The losers are practically untouched and the winners are both on the ground." Kaminari noted.

All Might went to check the Teams. Izuku was taken to the nurse's office. All Might and the Teams walked into the monitoring room. I stalked up to Katsuki and slapped him across the cheek. Everyone gasped.

"You idiot! You could have killed him!" I wrapped him in a hug. "But I'm sorry you lost, you're just going to get stronger now."

Katsuki shoved me off and walked away. Uraraka, Iida, and Katsuki all stood facing us. I joined the rest of my classmates.

"Well despite the results the MVP of this exercise is young Iida." All Might announced.

Everyone gasped.

"Shouldn't it be one of the heroes instead since they're the winners?" Tsu asked.

"Valid question, why didn't I choose one of those two? Who has a guess?" All Might looked around.

Yaoyorozu raised her hand. "I can tell you why Iida embraced this challenge. He was the only one who truly adapted to his assigned role. I'll explain. Bakugou's judgment was clouded by a personal grudge against Midoriya. As you pointed out earlier, launching a large scale attack indoors was a foolish move. It could have been disastrous. Similarly, Midoriya's plan was also poorly thought out, considering the amount of damage he received. He rendered himself helpless, not smart. As for Uraraka, she let her guard down mid-battle. Her final attack was far too reckless, given the hypothetical stakes. If she treated the fake weapon as though it were real, she never would have used such an imprecise move. Iida was fully prepared for his opponent's arrival. He had a strategy and never lost sight of his mission to protect the dummy weapon, even if he was foiled in the end. Technically the hero team won, yes. But they took advantage that this was training. They didn't respect the spirit of the trial."

I looked over at my partner. I knew she had gotten in on recommendations but man she was smart.

"Yes, well you overlooked a few things. Young Iida could have relaxed a little in the exercise. But otherwise, you nailed it." All Might gave short laugh.

"One should always start with the basics and devote themselves wholeheartedly to learning. That's the only real way to become a top hero." Yaoyorozu smiled.

"Now then, time to blow this joint. Let's move on to the next match. Think about everything we saw and discussed as you tackle this training for yourself." All Might stood in front of the hero and villain boxes.

"Yes, sir!" We called.

Next was Ojiro and Hagakure against Shoji and Todoroki. Todoroki used his quirk to freeze the entire building in one move. I glanced at Katsuki, he didn't look so good. After the review, it was Sero and Kirishima vs Tokoyami and Tsu. Then it was Yaoyorozu and I. We were up against Kaminari and Jirou. I walked over to Kaminari and held out my hand.

"Good luck out there." I smiled.

He shook my hand. "You too."

I quickly copied his quirk. I made my way back to Yaoyorozu.

"I got it," I smirked.

"Good." She nodded.

We made our way into the building and up to the weapon. Yaoyorozu started making metal bars for the door.

"Hey, can you make an electric proof blanket?" I asked suddenly.

"Yes, it might take me a little to make one big enough for the both of us."

"Just make a small one for you." I grinned. "I'm electric proof already."

"Do you have a plan?" She asked.

"Yep," I quickly explained the plan to her.

"Alright, that sounds good." She agreed.

"Team C and Team J, your time starts now!" All Might called.

I looked over at Yaoyorozu, she nodded and I snuck out of the room. Jirou would probably try to listen for us. Kaminari would come after us with his quirk. Sure enough, as soon as I walked around the corner there was Kaminari.

"I hate to do this to you, you're such a cute girl but..." Kaminari stepped closer.

I turned and ran, pretending to be scared. I turned a corner and pressed my back against the wall, bracing myself for the electricity. I felt it run through my body, it was like touching something hot and cold at the same time. I shuddered, couldn't say I wanted to feel that again. Kaminari stepped around the corner.

"You're not paralyzed." He sounded surprised. "I guess I'll have to try again. Up the volts this time."

The hot-cold feeling came back. I reached out and touched Kaminari, hoping to maybe electrocute him. I closed my eyes, hopefully, Yaoyorozu was still on her blanket. When I opened them again Kaminari had this vacant dumb look on his face.

"Whey," he held two thumbs up.

I couldn't help but laugh. "So that's the drawback of your power. I'll try not to overuse it."

I grabbed my capture tape and tied him up. I touched my radio.

"Alright, I got Kaminari."

"Good, Jirou is here," Yaoyorozu replied.

"I'm on my way." I ran to the room.

Jirou looked surprised to see me. I glanced at Yaoyorozu, she was still on her blanket. I grinned.

"Sorry Jirou," I said and let off some electricity.

I don't know how much I used but my mind suddenly went fuzzy like I couldn't think straight. I vaguely remember something calling my name and something announcing that the villains won. Villains? What villains? My head was full of clouds. I could see where I was but that was it. Someone took my arm and started walking with me. How was I moving? Nothing made sense. I was sat in a room. I could see people surrounding me, saying things. One boy sat next to me. He said something I couldn't hear. I couldn't hear anything or feel anything or smell. I could do nothing but sit. Eventually, my head started to clear, I started to hear things again. I could make out faces and I had names for the faces. Katsuki was sitting next to me.

"You're so dumb, you know that." He said it teasingly.

"What?" I looked over at him. "What do you—"

A sharp pain pierced my temples. I yelped in pain. Several people looked over. Yaoyorozu knelt in front of me.

"Are you alright?"

"My head," I moaned in pain. "It hurts so bad."

"Let's go to the nurse's office." Yaoyorozu helped me up.

"Hey," Katsuki stopped her. "Is she going to be okay?"

"It's probably a drawback of her quirk," Yaoyorozu replied. "Tell All Might where we've gone."

"But—"

I yelped as another stab of pain ran through my head.

"Go, now." Yaoyorozu said sternly.

Katsuki didn't argue, which was strange for him. I wanted to ask him what was wrong but the pain was getting worse. Yaoyorozu led me to the nurse's office where I was told to take some aspirin, drink some water and get some rest.

"Hey Yaoyorozu, did we win?" I asked after taking a sip of water.

"We did." She nodded. "After you electrocuted Jirou, I captured her and All Might announced that we won."

"I'm glad I didn't mess anything up." I looked down.

"Of course not, your plan went perfectly." Yaoyorozu touched my hand.

"Thanks." I smiled.

* * *

After about half an hour sitting in the nurse's office, I felt better. The pain was gone and I could think clearly again. Recovery Girl sent me back to class. Hero Basic Training was over and we were back to our normal class. English 1 and then P.E. I missed some of English but I was excused. After all our classes were done everyone started chatting about the training exercise. I pulled out my notebook and started a page on Kaminari. I wrote down how his quirk worked and his disadvantages. I even sketched a picture of his short-circuited side. I wrinkled my nose, thinking about how I had looked like that.

"Is that really what I look like?"

I looked up so fast I ended up hitting them in the face. I rubbed my head and looked up at Kaminari, who was holding his nose.

"Oh shoot, I'm so sorry. You just scared me."

He waved me away. "Nah it's fine. It's not broken."

"Um, what did you need?" I closed my notebook.

"Oh, I just want to ask about your quirk." He rubbed his nose.

"Well, my quirk is copy. I can copy any quirk I want. The strength and time depend on the touch. So like with our handshake I only got about 10 to 15 percent of your power."

"Wow, your power is pretty complex," Kaminari said. "I could never remember any of that."

I laughed. "Even I have a hard time remembering it. And most of it is a guess too."

Kaminari shuffled his feet. "Do you want to come—"

"Hey Neko, come on. We're leaving." Katsuki walked up to my desk.

"Oh okay." I started packing my things. "Sorry Kaminari, I've got to go now. I'll see you tomorrow."

I followed Katsuki through the group of people.

"Bakugou, shouldn't you wait to see if Midoriya is okay?" Iida asked.

"Why should I care?" Katsuki scoffed.

"He's your classmate, man." Kirishima cut in.

"So?" Katsuki turned away.

"Just wait a few more minutes." Uraraka pleaded.

"Katsuki, maybe we should wait." I touched Katsuki's shoulder.

He shrugged me off. "I don't care. I'm going home."

I glanced back at the rest of my classmates before following him out the door. We made our way to the front gates in silence.

"Kacchan!"

Katsuki kept walking, I glanced back and saw Izuku.

"Wait up!"

Katsuki stopped and turned around. "What?"

Izuku stopped and looked down. "I have to tell you something. Maybe then you'll understand what's going on. I wasn't hiding my quirk from you. It was given to me by someone else. Recently."

Katsuki grunted.

"Izuku—" I started.

"But I can't tell you who got it from, so don't ask! Sounds crazy, I know. It's like something out of a comic book only it's real. The thing is, I don't really have any control over this power yet. I haven't figured out how to make it my own. But I'm trying. That's why I didn't want to use it against you in the exercise but in the end, it was the only way I had a chance at winning." Izuku explained. "I've still got a lot to learn, I know that. That's why I'm here. You'll see, I'll work until I have full control over this borrowed quirk. And I'll finally beat you with my own power."

"How dumb do you think I am?" Katsuki growled. "Borrowed power? Don't talk to me like I'm an idiot. You already made a fool out of me in that damn training exercise. So? Did you come here to rub it in? I lost and to make matters worse it was to you! I came in first in the exam. But that's not enough! When I was watching that ice guy, I realized I couldn't beat him in a head-to-head fight!" He covered his face. "Crap! I even agreed with what that girl said. My attack was so stupid! Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" He clenched his fist. "Enjoy that win Deku, you won't get another!"

I stared at Katsuki in shock, he was crying. In all my years of knowing him, I had never seen him cry.

"I'm just getting started! Got that!" Katsuki yelled. "I'm gonna end up the number 1 hero no matter what!" Katsuki turned and started walking away. "You'll never beat me again, you bastard. Don't even try."

I walked over to Katsuki and put an arm around his shoulders. He pushed me away.

"There you are!" All Might appeared. "Baku. Gou. I found you." He grabbed Katsuki's shoulders. "Just so you know, pride is an important attribute to have. But while you certainly have abilities to become a pro hero, there's still plenty you have to learn."

"Let go of me, All Might. Right now." Katsuki glared at him. "Save your speeches. I'll become more famous than you and I'll do it without your help."

"Uh right…" All Might let him go.

I quickly took his place, grabbed Katsuki's arm and not letting go no matter how much he shoved. When we were out of the sight of the school he actually relaxed into my touch. I stroked his arm with my tail. He still wouldn't look at me. I led him to a bench and we sat down.

"Hey Katsu, are you alright?" I asked softly.

"I'm fine! Let me go." He tried to pull away again.

"Katsu, it's okay to be upset." I rubbed his back.

"Damn it, you shouldn't see me this weak." He turned his head away.

"I don't care. Besides you've seen me cry more times than I can count." I smiled. "Katsu, crying doesn't make you weak. It just means you're human."

He wiped his face. "It doesn't matter."

I sighed. "If you say so. Come on let's go home."

I grabbed his hand and pulled him off the bench. I wanted to ask him about his thoughts on Izuku's quirk but that could wait till tomorrow. When the wound wasn't so fresh. Some might say that I shouldn't "baby" Katsuki but I don't care. I will help him get through this in my own way and that includes babying him a little. He has a large ego and I know that. He already got told off today and he's beating himself up. He doesn't need one more person bashing his character. So I won't. I will stay by his side through thick and thin and no one will take me away. Ever.


	10. Chapter 10

The next day the school was surrounded by reporters. Katsuki and I tried to push through them but they kept sticking microphones in our faces. Finally one of them recognized Katsuki from the sludge villain.

"Excuse me, kid, are you in All Might's class? Oh hold on, aren't you that sludge villain kid?"

Katsuki stopped. "Walk away."

The reporter turned to me. "You're the cat girl that tried to save him. Are you one of All Might's students?"

"Um yeah," I shifted nervously.

"What's it like?"

"Well, it's kinda amazing. He's such a famous hero and I'm honored that he's teaching mE—!" My voice jumped as Katsuki grabbed me by my backpack and pulled me away.

"We're going to be late for class." He dragged me away.

"Oh uh okay." I tried to right myself and failed. "Um Katsuki, you can let me go now."

He tched and let me go. We walked into class and sat down. Class started a bit later since all the press slowed everyone down.

"Decent work on yesterday's combat training you guys." Aizawa started. "I saw the video feeds and went over each of your team's results. Bakugou, your talented so don't sulk like a child over your loss okay?"

"Yeah, whatever," Katsuki muttered.

I knew Katsuki was already mostly over it. After one 1/2 pint of ice cream, a face mask, and a massage, I was able to get him to rant himself to sleep. Of course, he told me to forget about it the next morning but that's just Katsuki.

"And Midoriya, I see the only way you won the match was by messing up your arm again." Aizawa sighed. "Work harder and don't give me the excuse that you don't have control over your quirk. That line's already getting old. You can't keep breaking your body while training here. But your quirk will be really useful if you can get a handle on it. So show a little urgency huh."

"Right!" Izuku grinned.

"Oh Chino, see me after class please." Aizawa looked at me.

"Yes sir," I glanced down.

"Let's get down to business. Our first test will decide your future." Aizawa said. "You all need to pick a class representative."

Everyone started shouting at once. I covered my ears at the sudden noise. I put my head on my desk. Loud noises gave me a bad headache. I looked up as the class quieted down.

Iida had his hand raised. "The class representative's duty is to lead others, that's not something just anyone can do. You must first have the trust of everyone in the classroom. Therefore the most logical way to fill this position is democratically. We will hold an election to choose our leader."

"Is this really the best idea?" Kaminari asked.

"We've only known each other for a few days. How do we know who we can trust?" Tsu pointed out.

"Besides everyone will just vote for themselves," Kirishima said.

"Most people will but that means whoever does receive multiple votes must truly be the most suitable person for the job. Its the best way, right sir?" Iida looked over at Aizawa.

"Do what you want, just decide before my naps over." Aizawa laid down.

"Thank you for your trust!" Iida called.

The votes were cast and the list was written on the board. I had two votes, I was tied with Yaoyorozu.

"How did I get three votes?" Izuku exclaimed.

"Okay, you idiots who voted for him?" Katsuki yelled

"What? Did you honestly think anyone was going to vote for you?" Sero asked.

"What did you say? Don't tell me you voted for that little turd?" Katsuki growled.

"You're just proving my point man," Sero said.

"Okay, Katsuki, let's just sit down." I touched his shoulder.

"Shut up, you don't get a say in this!" Katsuki shoved me off.

"Fine," I sat back down.

Yaoyorozu walked over. "So how do we decide who gets deputy?"

"Oh, you can have it." I shrugged. "I mean I voted for myself but I didn't think I would get another vote."

Izuku and Yaoyorozu walked up to the front of the class. Izuku was shaking from head to toe. Aizawa sat up.

"Alright the class rep is Midoriya and our deputy is Yaoyorozu."

"Really?" Izuku asked. "It's not a mistake?"

Yaoyorozu sighed. "How did this happen?"

"This might not be that bad," Tsu said.

"Yeah I could get by on Midoryia I guess." Kirishima agreed.

"Yaoyorozu was totally on top of it when it came to our training results," Kaminari spoke up.

Aizawa dismissed us and we all went to lunch. I sat at my usual table with Katsuki and Kirishima. Katsuki sat his tray down and sat next to me. Closer than normal.

"Why didn't you take the deputy spot?" Katsuki asked.

"Because I didn't really want all the responsibility and I don't think I'm that good of a leader." I shrugged.

"Come on, you're a great leader." Kirishima protested. "That's why I voted for you. And besides who can't love you? You're a cat!"

"Katsuki," I responded almost instantly.

"What?" Both boys looked over at me.

"You asked who can't love me because I'm a cat," I replied. "Katsuki. He's a dog person."

Kirishima studied Katsuki. "Yeah, I can see that."

"Huh? What exactly are you implying?" Katsuki growled.

Before Kirishima could answer a bell ran.

"Warning level 3 security breach. Please evacuate the building in an orderly fashion."

Everyone started freaking out. I looked over at Katsuki.

"What does that mean?"

"It means someone got on the school grounds." Katsuki stood up.

He grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the exit. We soon got caught up in the crowds pushing and shoving. Katsuki pushed his way to the edge where the shoving wasn't as bad. Kids pushed passed, shoving Katsuki closer to me. I was pressed between Katsuki and the window. I looked outside, maybe I could see the villains. I gasped.

"Katsuki, it's the press. There aren't any villains." I whispered.

"Really? How did the damn press get in here?" He growled.

"I don't know."

I looked up as someone started floating above the crowd. It was Iida. He activated his quirk and spun himself towards the exit. He hit the wall.

"Listen up, everything is okay! It's just the media outside. There's absolutely nothing to worry about. Everything's fine." Iida called. "We're UA students. We need to remain calm and prove that we're the best of the best."

Everyone sighed and a few people looked out the window.

"Look the police are here."

Katsuki looked down at me. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." I nodded.

Katsuki straightened and everyone started to go back to their places. We walked back to the cafeteria and finished lunch.

After lunch, we decided who the other class officers would be. Izuku gave up his position to Iida. After that we finished the rest of our classes then we were dismissed. I grabbed my stuff and headed outside. I stopped at the gates, where the security gate was turned to dust. I leaned down and picked up the dust. I knew who did this. That meant he was going to make his move soon. I scattered the dust and looked up at the school. Maybe the heroes deserved a scare for once. See how they would like to lose something they cared about. I smiled and turned away. Beware, heroes, darkness is coming.

* * *

Ok, this is a super short chapter but I really liked how it ended.


	11. Chapter 11

"Today's training will be a little different. You'll have three instructors. Me, All Might, and another faculty member will be keeping tabs on you." Aizawa said.

"Sir, what kind of training is this?" Sero asked.

Aizawa held out a card. "Rescue. You'll be dealing with natural disasters, shipwrecks, stuff like that."

Everyone started talking at once. I managed a smile. Rescue, I could do that. There was no fighting involved which meant I didn't have to have a quirk.

"Guys, I'm not finished yet." Aizawa cut in. "What you wear in this exercise is up to you. I know you're excited about costumes. But keep in mind that you haven't gotten used to them yet and they might limit your abilities. This special training is at an off-campus facility so we'll be taking a bus to get there. That's all, start getting ready."

Aizawa walked away. Everyone got up and grabbed their hero costumes. Then we all left to change. I put on everything but my mask. After everyone was changed we all headed outside. Iida blew a whistle.

"Gather around, Class 1-A. Using your student numbers form two neat lines so that we can load the bus efficiently." He blew the whistle again.

Everyone loaded the bus. I chose to sit next to Katsuki even though it probably wasn't according to Iida's plan. Once everyone was onboard the bus started driving away.

"The bus's open layout ruined my boarding strategy." Iida groaned.

"Iida, you really need to chill." Mina sighed.

"If we're pointing out the obvious, then there's something I want to say." Tsu looked over at Izuku. "About you actually,"

"About me? What is it Asui?" Izuku looked nervous.

"I told you to call me Tsu."

"Oh yeah right." Izuku looked down.

"That power of yours, isn't it a lot like All Might's?"

"What really? You think so huh? I never really thought about that, I guess it's kind of similar." Izuku started rambling.

I looked over at Katsuki. "What do you think? He said he borrowed it."

Katsuki grunted and looked out the window. "It's possible. But have you ever heard of someone borrowing a quirk?"

"Um, that's what I do." I poked his side.

"Yeah, but you can't have it permanently."

"True, it sounds like he has it permanently." I mused.

I turned back into the conversation when I heard Katsuki's name. Katsuki looked over, Kirishima smiled at him. Katsuki grunted and turned away.

"Sure but Bakugou's always angry, so he'll never be that popular," Tsu said.

"What did you say? I kick your ass!" Katsuki stood up.

"You see?" She pointed at him.

"You know we basically just met you so it's kinda telling that we all know your personality is flaming crap mixed with garbage." Kaminari shrugged.

"You're going to regret the day you applied to this school you loser. I'll kill you." Katsuki yelled.

"Enough, as a class, we should encourage each other." Iida cut him off.

"I'm gonna encourage this dumbass to explode." Katsuki snarled.

"What did you say? Crazy dude." Kaminari laughed.

"Shut up sparky!"

I absentmindedly grabbed the back of Katsuki's shirt, holding him back.

"Alright, alright, You both should apologize." Iida held his hand up.

"Sure, if he goes first," Kaminari smirked.

"Like hell, I will," Katsuki growled.

"Hey, hey we're here. Stop messing around." Aizawa called.

"Yes sir," we all said.

Katsuki sat back in his seat with a huff. I looked out the window, wondering how exactly this day would play out. The bus stopped and we all unloaded.

"Hello everyone, I've been waiting for you." 13 was standing in front of the rescue center.

I winced. I didn't want her to get hurt too. I glanced around for All Might. He wasn't here at the moment. Maybe he was inside.

"I can't wait to show you what's inside." 13 gestured for us to come inside.

We all followed her inside. I looked around, it did look really cool too bad it was about to be dust. There was a shipwreck, a landslide, a damaged city, a mountain, and two domed buildings. I shuttered, ears flattening, I really hoped I didn't have to go to the shipwreck. I hated water.

"I created this training facility to prepare you to deal with different types of disasters. I call it, the Unforeseen Simulation Joint, but you can call it USJ." 13 did a little pose.

I wanted to laugh but I couldn't bring myself to.

"Hey, shouldn't All Might be here already?" Aizawa walked over to 13. "Let me guess, he booked an interview instead."

"Actually it's something else," 13 lowered her voice.

I perked up, ears pointed forwards. This could be good. Something Tomura didn't know.

"Apparently he did too much hero work on the way to school this morning and used up all his power. He's resting in the teacher's lounge."

I cocked my head. What did that mean? Used up all his power? Was he getting weaker? Tomura would love that. I went to grab my phone to text him but I realized Aizawa made us leave them behind.

"That man is the height of irresponsibility." Aizawa sighed. "The clocks ticking, we should get started."

"Excellent, before we begin let me just say one thing. Well, two things, possibly three, four, or five." 13 trailed off. "Listen carefully, I'm sure you're aware that I have a powerful quirk. It's called Black Hole. I can use it to suck up anything and turn it into dust."

"Yeah, you've used black hole to save people from all kinds of disasters before, haven't you?" Izuku jumped in.

"That's true, but my quirk could also very easily be used to kill." 13 said somberly. "Some of you also have powers that can be dangerous. In our superhuman society, all quirks are certified and regulated. So we often overlook how unsafe they can actually be. Please don't forget that if you lose focus or make the wrong move, your powers can be deadly. Even if you're trying to do something virtuous like rescue someone. Thanks to Aizawa's fitness tests, you have a solid idea of your quirks potential and because of All Might's combat training, you likely experienced how dangerous your powers can be when used against other people. Carry those lessons over to this class. Today you're going to learn how to use your quirks to save people's lives. You won't be using your powers to attack enemies or each other, only to help. After all, that's what being a hero is all about. Ensuring the safety of others. That's all I have to say. Thank you so much for listening."

Everyone started cheering and clapping. I looked down, after that speech I wasn't quite sure if I wanted to go through with this.

"Right, now that that's over." Aizawa started.

I looked up as the lights shut off. The fountain in the middle started sputtering and a purple hole appeared in front of it. He was coming. Aizawa turned around.

"Stay together and don't move. 13 protect the students."

"What is that thing?" Kirishima stepped back.

Tomura stepped out of the gate along with several other hired thugs.

"Wait has the training started already? I thought we were rescuing people." Kirishima said.

"Stay back!" Aizawa put on his goggles. "This is real. Those are villains."

A large black creature stepped out beside Tomura. I realized that must be what they were using to kill All Might. Tomura had never filled me in fully. He said he didn't trust me. Which was fair, I didn't even trust myself at this moment. I glanced around. Who's quirk should I use?

"The only real heroes I see are 13 and Eraserhead. Perplexing. According to the schedule we retrieved from UA All Might should be here as well." Kurogiri started to take shape.

"So you scumbags used the press as a cover-up and sneaked onto campus." Aizawa activated his quirk.

"Real villains? No way, how could so many of them get into a UA facility this secure?" Kirishima asked.

"Yeah, 13 why aren't the alarms going off?" Yaoyorozu stepped forwards.

"Good question." 13 mused. "I'm not sure."

"Is the entire campus under attack? Or is this their only target?" Todoroki questioned. "Either way if the alarms sensors aren't being triggered then one of these villains must have a quirk that's masking their presence here. They carefully chose this isolated facility as an entry point at a time when a class was being taught. They're fools for trespassing here…but they've thought this out. Whatever their plan they must have a concrete objective in mind. What is it?"

"They want All Might." I murmured then winced as all eyes turned towards me. "At least that's what they said."

"Kaminari, try using your quirk to contact the school," Aizawa called.

"What are you going to do? You can't fight them on your own!" Izuku exclaimed. "There's too many of them. Even if you can nullify their quirks, your fighting style's not suited for this. Your power works best in stealth and one on one fights. That's not going to help with a group."

"You can't be a pro if you only have one trick," Aizawa said. "I'll leave it to you 13."

He jumped down the stairs and ran at the enemy.

"No!" I pushed to the front of the group.

I watched as Aizawa erased the first three people's quirks and knock them out. A man with a mutation quirk ran at him. I sucked in a breath, his quirk didn't work on mutation quirks. Aizawa dodged and punched the villain in the face.

"Come on, this way." 13 called.

Everyone started making their way to the entrance. I stayed put. If Aizawa got hurt it would be my fault.

"Whoa, he's holding them off." Izuku broke me out of my thoughts. "I guess I shouldn't of underestimated him."

"This is no time to be analyzing. We have to go." Iida called.

Izuku turned and ran towards the rest of the class. I hesitated, watching Aizawa before looking over at Tomura. I couldn't make out his facial expression but I knew he wasn't too happy about Aizawa taking out all his thugs.

"Chino!" Iida yelled.

I turned and started to run back to the class but stopped as Kurogiri appeared in front of them. Carefully I inched forwards and touched Todoroki's shoulder.

"There is no escape for you." Kurogiri took up the entire pathway. "It's a pleasure to meet you. We are the League of Villains. I know it's impolite but we decided to invite ourselves into this haven of justice to say hello. And besides, isn't this a fitting place for All Might, the symbol of peace, to take his last breath? I believe he was supposed to be here today and yet I see no sign of him. There must have been some sort of change in plans we could not have foreseen. Ah well, in the end, I suppose it doesn't matter, I still have a role to play."

I watched as Katsuki and Kirishima launched themselves at Kurogiri. A large explosion threw me back. When I opened my eyes I couldn't see anything because of the smoke.

"Did you think we were just going to stand around and let you tear this place to shreds?" I heard Kirishima yell.

"You live up to your school's reputation but you should be more careful children, otherwise someone might get hurt." Kurogiri's voice seemed to echo around the building.

"You two… get out of the way right now!" 13 yelled.

"I'll scatter you across this facility to meet my comrades and your death!" Purple-black shadows surrounded everyone.

I froze, this wasn't part of the plan. I wasn't supposed to be sucked into this. I closed my eyes as I felt myself being transported. I didn't realize I was falling until I hit the water. I panicked and gasped, taking in water instead of air. I quickly swam to the surface. I broke the surface gasping and coughing up water. I looked around, I was only a few yards from the ship. I swam over to the side and created ice steps up to the deck. I pushed myself over and laid there, shivering.

"Koneko?"

I opened my eyes, Izuku and Tsu stood above me.

"Izuku?" I sat up. "What's happening?"

"The villain teleported us," Izuku said.

"Yeah, I got that." I ran my hand down my tail, squeezing the water out. "But what's happening now?"

"Oh well the villains have our schedule and they're trying to kill All Might," Izuku replied.

"Yep, got that too." I wrung my hair out. "What's our situation now?"

"We don't know," Tsu said. "We've seen one villain so far—"

She stopped and looked over the side. I stood up and looked over the rail. Eight villains were coming towards us and I was sure there were more on the other side.

"If they can beat him,"

We turned to look at Izuku.

"Then we have to stop whatever these bad guys are planning. We have to work together and keep All Might safe. No one at UA knows what's happening. This is up to us, let's be heroes." Izuku looked determined.

I swallowed. Could I do that? Could I betray Tomura? I might have to in order to maintain my identity.

"Think about it, those villains down there clearly have an advantage in the water and assume that's where we'll fight." Izuku mused.

"If that's the case, they must have known what was inside the USJ before they warped in," Tsu said.

"Yeah," Izuku agreed. "But for a group with such careful planning, there's one thing that sticks out to me, something that just doesn't add up. They sent you here Asui, er," Izuku got super flustered. "Um whoops, I meant Tsu. Yeah, they warped you to the shipwreck zone."

"That kinda fell apart on you, didn't it?" Tsu commented.

"A little bit," Izuku sighed. "Anyway, this means the villains probably have no idea what our quirks are."

"You've got a point." Tsu croaked. "If they knew I was a frog, they would have sent me into that fire zone over there instead of somewhere full of water."

I shivered, tucking my tail between my legs. Tomura would find some way to punish me because of that. But they also sent me here, which means it was probably just random.

"They probably separated us because they didn't know what we could do and planned to overpower us once we were in smaller groups. Easier to pick us off one by one. We can use that to our advantage. They don't know what our quirks are, so for all they know the three of us could be super powerful. Look none of them are trying to climb into the boat, that proves they're a little unsure." Izuku nodded to the group. "But that means they're not going to underestimate us either. They're being smart and playing safe, for now."

"So let's talk quirks," Tsu squatted on the deck. "I'll go first if you want. Obviously I can jump high and cling to pretty much any wall and of course, there's my tongue, I can stick it out about 20 meters. Oh yeah, and I can spit out my stomach so I can clean it but that's not really useful. Finally, I also secrete a toxic mucus. It just stings a bit. We can probably only use my jumping and my tongue here, forget about the last things."

I made a mental note of everything she said so I could write it down later. As I shivered again I subconsciously started warming my left side up with Todoroki's quirk.

"I figured you were powerful but that's amazing." Izuku raised his fist. "I have my super strength but it comes at a price. Once I use it I'm pretty much out of commission. It's a double-edged sword until I can control it." Izuku looked at me. "What about you Koneko? You've been quiet. Did you manage to copy a quirk?"

I managed a nod. "Yeah, Todoroki's but I'm not sure how to use it." I raised my right hand and concentrated on ice. Several crystals appeared on my arm. I raised my left hand and small flames licked my fingers. I was about to say something else the entire boat rocked to port. A giant crack appeared in the middle of the boat.

"I'm starting to get bored!" One of the villains yelled. "Let's get this show on the road."

I grabbed the side of the boat. I did not want to get back in the water. The ship slowly started to sink.

"Listen up,"

I looked over at Izuku. He was standing up, watching the water.

"An enemy that's certain of their victory is bound to make a mistake. All Might said something along those lines in a tv interview awhile back. Now's our chance, we can beat them."

"How?" I asked, ears flattening. "I'm not getting back in that water."

Izuku quickly explained the plan.

"How about I go on top of the water?" I suggested. "I could freeze them. And that way Tsu doesn't have to carry both of us."

"That could work, but can you control the ice?" Izuku tapped his chin.

"I think so. Then I could melt the bridge so that no one could follow."

"Okay, then that's what we'll do." Izuku stood up and put his foot on the railing. He screamed and jumped up. "Now die."

I stifled a laugh, he was acting like Katsuki. Izuku aimed his finger at the middle of the group.

"You ready, Koneko?" Tsu asked.

"Yeah," my tail twitched slightly.

"Take this! Delaware Smash!" Izuku yelled and launched his attack.

The water churned and frothed. It created a whirlpool and started sucking the villains in.

"Tsu, Koneko, now!" Izuku called.

Tsu jumped off the boat and grabbed Izuku with her tongue. I watched as the villains were all sucked in. I jumped off the boat and created an ice slide to the water. I created an ice pathway and ran for shore, melting the path behind me. Before I ran across I froze the villains together. I winced, Tomura was definitely going to kill me. I met up with Izuku and Tsu when they landed in the water. Izuku was muttering again.

"I can't believe we managed to get all of them at once. It took everything I had to keep my composer. It was such a gamble, what if they had reserves underwater that we didn't know about? They could have shot—"

"You're creeping me out." Tsu cut in. "Stop it. Please."

Izuku stopped and looked at her.

"Instead of second-guessing what we did, shouldn't we think about our next move?" She asked.

"Yeah, you're totally right." Izuku winced.

"Are you okay?" Tsu asked concerned.

I reached out and touched his hand. "Let me ice it." I covered his fingers in a thin coat of ice.

"Thanks, I'm fine." He covered his hand with his elbow pad. "We should make getting help our top priority. If we follow the shore to the exit we can avoid the central plaza entirely."

"Good idea." Tsu agreed. "That way we don't run into the villains Mr. Aizawa's facing off with there."

Izuku suddenly spoke up. "If he doesn't get some backup then he's just going overexert himself, he'll end up defeated by those villains cause he was trying to keep us safe."

My hands started shaking. It's my fault. If he got hurt it would be my fault.

"Wait, Midoriya." Tsu croaked.

"I'm not saying that we should jump into the middle of the battle. But…" Izuku looked over at the battlefield. "Maybe we can find a way to take a few of those guys out and lighten his load."

"Izuku…" I managed. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"We won't fight, we'll just survey." He replied. "We'll get out of there the second it seems dangerous."

"Fine." I tucked my tail between my legs.

We made our way along the shoreline, keeping just out of sight. When we got the battlefield we slowly peeked out. We watched as Aizawa took out several more villains. He was tired, I could hear him breathing hard. Tomura ran at him.

"Final Boss." Aizawa shot his scarf out but Tomura just grabbed it.

Tomura reached for Aizawa but Aizawa elbowed him in the stomach. The others sighed in relief but I saw otherwise. Tomura had grabbed Aizawa's elbow.

"It was hard to see when you were jumping around but I found your tell. It's your hair. When it drops it means you've stopped using your quirk."

Aizawa's elbow started to disintegrate.

"You're having to blink more often. Don't push yourself too hard now, you might just fall apart. Wouldn't that be a shame?"

Aizawa activated his quirk again and shoved Tomura away. He jumped back but another villain lunged at him. Soon he was surrounded.

"That annoying quirk of yours isn't suited for drawn out fights against big groups, is it?" Tomura pushed himself back up. "Don't you think you're a little out of your element here Eraserhead? You're much better at working stealthily. You're known for surprise attacks not fighting head to head. But despite knowing that, you didn't hesitate to jump into the middle of this fight. To put your students at ease."

Aizawa captured another villain and used him as a shield against one other. He punched the villain in the face and kicked another. He was exhausted.

"And look at you you're still standing. You really are so cool. I guess the little kitten was right." Tomura said. "Oh, by the way, hero, I am not the final boss."

The large black creature suddenly appeared behind Aizawa. It reached out and grabbed Aizawa, crushing his goggles and most likely cracking his skull. It smashed his head into the ground over and over again.

"No, Mr. Aizawa," Izuku whispered.

"No, no, no." I started shaking.

"What do you think of him Eraserhead?" Tomura asked. "He's the bioengineered anti-symbol of peace. But you can call him Nomu."

Nomu let out a scream. I covered my mouth with my hands. Could this thing take out All Might? Nomu squeezed Aizawa's arm, breaking it. Aizawa let out a pained scream.

"You can erase people's powers, that's irritating but it's nothing impressive. When faced with true devastating power you might as well be a quirkless child." Tomura laughed.

Aizawa activated his power but Nomu slammed its hand down on Aizawa's arm. Aizawa screamed. Nomu grabbed Aizawa's head and slammed his head into the ground. We all sat there, frozen. Kurogiri appeared by Tomura's side.

"Tomura Shigaraki,"

"Kurogiri, did you manage to kill 13?" Tomura looked over at Kurogiri.

"The rescue hero is out of commission. But there were students I was unable to disperse and one of them got outside of the facility." Kurogiri replied.

"Iida got out," I whispered.

Tomura started scratching his neck. "Kurogiri, you fool. If you weren't our warp gate I'd tear apart every last Adom in your body." He suddenly stopped. "There's no way we can win if dozens of pros show up to stop us. It's game over. Back to the title screen. And I was looking forward to finishing this today. Damn it, let's go home."

"They said they were going home," Tsu whispered. "I have a real bad feeling about this Midoriya."

Izuku nodded. "It seems weird that they'd retreat at this point even if help is on the way."

"Oh, before we leave. Let's make sure the symbol of peace is broken." Tomura turned towards us.

I stifled a gasp, he knew we were here the entire time.

"Let's reck his pride." Tomura suddenly appeared in front of Tsu."Let's make this hurt."

I gritted my teeth and reached for Tomura ready to freeze him or turn him to ash. He would not hurt one of my friends. He stopped inches in front of Tsu's face.

"You really are so cool. Eraserhead."

I glanced at Aizawa, he had his quirk activated. Nomu slammed his face into the concrete again. Izuku jumped up.

"You let her go!" He yelled. "Now, smash!"

The force of Izuku's punch pushed everyone away and broke all the lights. I couldn't see anything from all the dust but when it cleared I could see that Nomu had blocked the punch. It seemed completely unharmed.

"You're pretty powerful. This smash of yours, are you one of All Might's disciples? Doesn't matter. I'm done with you now."

Nomu reached down and grabbed Izuku's arm, with his other hand he reached out to crush Izuku's skull. Tsu knocked Tomura's hand out of the way and shot her tongue out towards Izuku. I reached out and grabbed Tomura's arm. Just as I was about to freeze him the front door burst open. Everyone stopped and looked up.

"Have no fear students, I am here." All Might stood at the top of the stairs.

"He's here." Izuku murmured. "All Might."

"Ah looks like the game's getting a continue." Tomura stood up. "After all this waiting, the heroic piece of trash shows up."

In an instant All Might went from the top of the stairs to Aizawa's side, taking out all the villains along the way. I barely had time to think before I was being picked up. I looked over at Tomura, the hand covering his face had fallen off.

"Everybody back to the entrance. And take Aizawa with you. He doesn't have much time."

"You saved us All Might." Izuku looked up at the hero.

I looked between All Might and Tomura. Who was I loyal to? Tomura would kill me if I helped the heroes but if I helped the villains I would be taken away.

"No, no, no, it wasn't supposed to go this way. He's still fast, father. Somehow he managed to hit me." Tomura put the hand back on his face, he seemed to relax slightly. "Of course a government hero relies on violence. I wasn't prepared. I couldn't even see him when he moved. I wonder if the kitten did? But he's not as fast as we thought he would be, not as fast as he used to be. I guess it's true after all. All Might really is getting weaker."

Izuku picked up Aizawa. "All Might, you can't. That brain villain took One for er, I smashed and didn't break my arm this time but he wasn't fazed at all. He's too strong."

"Young Midoriya," All Might turned around. "I got this."

"But sir," I stepped forwards. "Tom—er the villain's right. You have gotten slower, are you sure you can beat them?" I glanced at Tomura, he gave me a slight nod. I relaxed slightly. Tomura knew what he was doing, I should trust him.

"I'll be fine. I may have gotten older but that doesn't affect my power."

I nodded and helped Izuku and Tsu carry Aizawa. I forced myself to look forwards and not focus on the battle. Tomura could do this. He had a plan. The heroes would suffer. They would finally understand what it felt like to lose someone. There was a loud crash behind us. I finally turned around, I couldn't see anything because of all the smoke. I turned back and we continued to the entrance. Izuku suddenly stopped. I almost crashed into him.

"Izuku, what…" I turned back to the battle.

Kurogiri had used his warp gate and Nomu had grabbed All Might's side. I couldn't hear what they were saying, we were too far. As the warp gates started to close I realized that Kurogiri intended to cut All Might in half. Not a very pretty way to die but it worked.

"Asui,"

"Yeah, what is it Midoriya?" Tsu asked.

"Will you carry Mr. Aizawa for me?"

"Sure, but what are you going to do?" Tsu took Aizawa from him.

I dropped Aizawa and quickly stood in front of Izuku. "Izuku, you can't. They'll kill you!" I grabbed his shoulders. "You may have a quirk now but that doesn't mean you can beat everyone."

"I know, but I have to try." Izuku pushed me out of the way and ran towards the fight.

"Izuku!" I yelled.

"I'm coming!" Izuku called.

"Izuku no!" I ran after him.

Kurogiri appeared in front of Izuku. "How foolish,"

I reached for Izuku but I wasn't close enough. Izuku was going to be warped who knows where. A loud explosion covered the place where Kurogiri once was.

"Get the hell out of my way, Deku!" Katsuki yelled. He tackled Kurogiri to the ground.

Ice crept up Nomu's leg and arm. I looked over and saw Todoroki.

"One of your poorly trained thugs told me you were here because you think you can kill All Might," Todoroki said.

All Might pried Nomu's arms opened and jumped away. He winced as he landed.

"Are you okay?" Izuku gasped.

My ear twitched and I looked up. Kirishima had leaped over my head and attack Tomura. But Tomura had moved out of the way.

"Damn that was going to be cool." Kirishima groaned.

"Guess I found your body that time, you smokey bastard," Katsuki growled.

"The symbol of peace will not be defeated by delinquents like you," Todoroki stated.

"Kacchan, everyone." Izuku looked around.

Tomura looked over at Kurogiri. "Kurogiri, how could you let this brat get the best of you? You've gotten us into a real jam here."

Katsuki chuckled. "You got careless, you dumb villain. It wasn't hard to figure you out. Only certain parts of you turn into that smoking warp gate. You use that mist to hide your actual body as a kind of distraction, thinking that made you safe. That's why we missed. But if you didn't have a body, you wouldn't be wearing this neck armor, right? You're not immune to physical attacks if they're well aimed."

Kurogiri tried to move but Katsuki let off a few small explosions.

"Don't move, you try anything funny and I'll blow your ass up so bad they'll be piecing you back together for weeks."

"Oh, that doesn't sound very heroic," Kirishima commented.

"They escaped uninjured and captured my two strongest men. The little kitten was right. They really are strong. They make the League of Villains look like amateurs. Can't have that." Tomura turned to Nomu. "Nomu,"

Nomu pulled himself out of the warp gate, knocking up his arm and leg in the process. He fixed his beady eyes on us. I took a step back, this thing was a monster.

Izuku took a step back. "How is that thing still moving? It's all messed up."

"Stay back everybody." All Might called.

Nomu started to regrow his arm and leg. I shuttered, I did not want to know where Tomura got this villain.

"What is this? I thought you said his power was shock absorption?" All Might stood up.

"I didn't say that was his only quirk." Tomura shrugged. "He also has super regeneration. Nomu has been modified to take you on even at 100% of your power. He's basically a highly efficient punching bag that hits back."

Everyone readied themselves for battle. I lit a fire on my left arm. Todoroki gave me a look of surprise but shrugged it off.

"First we need to free our method of escape. Get him Nomu."

"No!" I screamed and shot a wall of flames in front of Nomu but he just went right through them.

The force of Nomu's punch sent everyone flying. I held my ground and ran over to Tomura. I lit my arm on fire and held it against his neck. Tomura reached out to touch me.

"Touch me and I burn you to a crisp." I hissed.

"The little kitten is fiery today." Tomura chuckled.

"This wasn't according to plan." My tail twitched. "Leave my classmates out of it."

"Oh, you mean your little boyfriend?"

The flames grew hotter on my arm. "Don't touch him."

"Koneko!"

I glanced behind me, the four boys were okay but I didn't see All Might. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Tomura reach for my arm. I jumped back and dashed back to the boys. The dust cleared and I saw All Might standing in the rubble of the wall.

"These are kids and you didn't hold back." All Might panted.

Tomura walked to Nomu's side. "I didn't have much choice. He was threatening my companion. Besides these kids are no angels. The plain-looking one, he tried to kill me with a maxed out punch. What kind of hero does something like that? You think you can get away with being as violent as you want if you say it's for the sake of others. Well, you know what, All Might? That pisses me off. Why do people get to decide that some violent acts are heroic and others are villainous? Casting judgment on what's good and what evil. You think you're the symbol of peace, ha, you're just another government-sponsored instrument of violence. And violence always breeds more violence. I'll make sure the world understands that when you're dead."

"You're nothing but a lunatic. Criminals like you, you always try to make your actions sound noble. But admit it, you're only doing this because you like it. Isn't that right?" All Might said.

"He's got me figured out." Tomura laughed.

"We've got them outnumbered," Todoroki said.

Izuku nodded. "And Kacchan found the mist guy's weakness."

"But we don't know Nomu's." I pointed out.

"So? These dudes may act really tough but we can take them down with All Might's help." Kirishima grinned. "Let's do this."

"Don't attack. Get out of here." All Might called.

"You would have been in trouble earlier if it weren't for me, remember?" Todoroki pointed out. "You need our help."

"I thank you for your assistance. But this is different." All Might clenched his fist. "It's gonna be alright. Just sit back and watch a pro at work."

"But you're too hurt." Izuku protested. "You're bleeding and you're almost out of tim—"

All Might gave Izuku a thumbs up. I glanced at Izuku. He mentioned the time thing too. What did it mean?

"Nomu, Kurogiri, kill him. I'll deal with the children." Tomura came running at us.

"Heads up, we're fighting after all." Kirishima hardened his arms.

All Might launched himself forward and went head to head with Nomu. Their punches collided and launched us all backward. The force of their punches kept a steady wind blowing us backward.

"He's gonna fight that brain guy head-on?" Izuku asked.

"Whoa, they're so fast," Kirishima exclaimed.

I tried watching them but I couldn't keep track. They really were fast. Even with my heightened senses, I couldn't keep track. With one big punch, All Might launched Nomu back into the forest. Nomu got back up and lunged at All Might again. They flew up into the sky. All Might grabbed Nomu's arm and threw him to the ground. All Might landed in front of him.

"Now for a lesson. You may have heard these words before but I'll teach you what they really mean. Go beyond, Plus Ultra!" All Might punched Nomu, knocking him completely out of the building.

I stepped back, All Might beat Nomu. Tomura failed.

"That was like the finishing move in a video game. He beat the shock absorption right out of him. I've never seen that kind of brute strength." Kirishima exclaimed.

"Imagine having power like that." Katsuki murmured. "He must have been punching that monster so fast it couldn't regenerate."

"I really have gotten weaker." All Might grunted. "Back in my hay day, five hits would have been enough to knock that guy out." He stood up and faced us. "But today it took more than 300 mighty blows."

I looked over at Tomura. How would he react? He was visibly shaking. He looked like he was ready to kill someone.

"You've been bested villains." All Might called. "Surrender. We all want to get this over with quickly."

Tomura reached up and started scratching his neck. He seemed to be mumbling to himself.

"What's wrong?" All Might asked. "Not attacking me? Didn't you say you were going to clear this level earlier? Well come and get me, if you dare."

Tomura took a step back which was very unlike him. Something was wrong with him. I almost stepped forwards to help him but caught myself. I frowned, tail twitching in confusion. This wasn't normal. Tomura was always overconfident and cocky. He would win and no one would stop him. Much like someone else I knew.

"Man, this is intense," Katsuki whispered.

"As I expected, there's no reason for us to fight now. He'll handle this." Todoroki said.

"Come on Midoriya," Kirishima called. "We should regroup with other guys. The last thing we want to do is get taken hostage or get in his way."

Izuku refused to move. He seemed to be studying All Might. I cocked my head to the side, there seemed to be steam coming off him. Was that an indicator that he was getting weaker? Or was it something about his time?

"What? Are you scared?" All Might seemed to be shaking.

Tomura took a step back. He was scared. That's not normal. I narrowed my eyes, was he playing a game? Or was he genuinely scared? Tomura started scratching his neck again.

"If only Nomu was here." He muttered. "He'd rush you right now. Pound you into the ground without giving it a second thought."

"Tomura Shigaraki." Kurogiri leaned over. "Please, do not fret. Look at him, he has definitely weakened. Nomu's attacks were successful."

Tomura stopped. He seemed to relax a little.

"He's on his own. The children appear to be frozen in fear. And look, our underlings are recovering. We likely still have a few minutes before their reinforcements arrive. If you and I work together we can do this. We haven't missed our chance to kill All Might."

Tomura took his hands away from his neck. "Yeah, yeah you're right. This is it. We have no choice. We have to do it now. I mean, the big end boss is right here."

I glanced around. All around us the bad guys were starting to get up. I took a step back, Tomura still had a chance. He might still win this.

"I think All Might can hold his own against those two main guys." Kirishima hardened his arms. "Let's make sure these dudes don't hurt anybody else."

Todoroki turned to Izuku. "Will you be joining us?"

Izuku was still staring at All Might. Tomura ran towards All Might, hands outstretched. All Might stood frozen as if he was unable to move. I glanced back at the boys. In a split second, Izuku was gone. I looked around wildly. He had launched himself in the air, aiming for Kurogiri.

"Whoa, Midoriya!" Kirishima called.

"Don't you touch All Might, you stupid villains!" Izuku yelled.

Kurogiri created a warp gate that Tomura stuck his hand through.

"Izuku no!" I screamed. I knew what would happen. The same thing that happened to Aizawa.

"I won't fall for that again," Kurogiri said.

Tomura was inches away from Izuku's face when someone shot his hand. I whipped my head around to look up at the entrance. Snipe and the other heroes had arrived. I heard Present Mic scream and loud explosions.

"Ah man, the pros are here. It's game over for real. Let's go home and try this when we—" Tomura was suddenly shot in the shoulders and the legs.

I yelped and jumped back. I blinked in surprise, Tomura had gotten shot not once but four times. It would have been more if Kurogiri hadn't protected him.

"Let's go," Kurogiri said. He started to disappear but was stopped by something sucking his mist up. "This is—Black Hole!"

Tomura and Kurogiri were being sucked towards the heroes. Kurogiri grunted and they disappeared. I looked around ears alert. After seeing no sign of Kurogiri, I ran to Izuku's side.

"Izuku!" I knelt down. His legs were broken but that seemed to be the only damage.

"I couldn't do it, I wasn't able to help you." Izuku croaked.

"That's absolutely not true." All Might said.

Izuku and I looked up. I yelped and jumped back, ear back in alarm. Only half of the man in front of me I knew. The other half looked different.

"You bought me a few vital seconds. If not for that, I'd be dead now. Young Midoriya, you saved me once again."

"Thank you All Might." Izuku started crying. "I'm just so glad that you're okay."

"Wait, I'm sorry I'm not sure I know what's happening." I glanced back and forth.

Izuku looked over at me as if just now noticing I was there. All Might looked at me with surprise too.

"I guess you do have some questions, but I'll have to answer them later." All Might smiled.

"Midoriya hey!" Kirishima started to run over.

"Sorry, I can't get up." Izuku looked over.

"What? Are you okay?" Kirishima called.

I glanced over at All Might, who had fully transformed into a skeletal looking man. "Hang on Kirishima, I got him." I held out a hand to stop him but I didn't need to. Cementoss created a wall the block Kirishima.

"For your safety please stay back, young man. Join your classmates at the front gate. Leave the injured to us, we can take care of them."

"Oh gotcha, I'm on it." I heard Kirishima's footsteps retreating.

Izuku and All Might sighed in relief. All Might collapsed to a sitting position.

"Thanks for that. You saved my butt Cementoss. You too, young Chino."

I smiled and nodded.

"My pleasure. I'm actually a big fan of yours." Cementoss smiled. "We should sneak you out of here and get you both to the nurse's office. Seriously All Might, that could have been really bad."

"I had to act recklessly or else I'd be dead now." All Might touched the blood on his cheek. "Just goes to show how strong those villains were."

"Um, I can take Izuku up to the rest of the students," I spoke up.

"Of course," All Might looked over at me. "Take him to the rest of the heroes, they can get him to the nurse's office."

I nodded. "Alright,"

I reached over and picked Izuku up, bridal style. Izuku wrapped his arms around my neck. I glanced down, I could easily copy his quirk but that could be dangerous.

"Hold on tight." I smiled.

Izuku tightened his grip and I started running up to the rest of the students. I managed to catch up with Katsuki and the others. I wanted to slow down but I needed to get Izuku to the heroes as soon as possible. I couldn't let someone else suffer because of me. I glanced down.

"Are you okay? It's going to get a little rough." I asked, tail curling in concern.

"I'm fine." He replied then winced. "I mean it's kinda painful but I'll be okay."

"I can slow down if that would help." I slowed my pace.

"Yeah, that's a little better." He smiled. "Thanks for this, Koneko."

"Of course." I focused on the stairs in front of me. "Hang on."

I stopped and jumped. I jumped up six steps at a time. Normally I could do more but I didn't want to hurt Izuku further. I made it to the top and ran over to the heroes.

"We need to take Izuku to Recovery Girl," I said.

"Of course," Nezu nodded. "Take him outside, there should be an ambulance."

"Deku!" Uraraka ran up. "Is he okay?"

"He'll be fine," I replied quickly, walking outside.

I passed Izuku off to the medics then met back up with the rest of the class. The heroes moved us away from the entrance and told us to stay together. I made my way to Katsuki's side. The police arrived soon after.

"16, 17, 18, 19, everyone seems to be unharmed except for that boy whose legs were all messed up." The detective counted us all.

I glanced over at Katsuki. He was too quiet, his face was completely relaxed. The students started to disperse. I stayed by Katsuki's side. Tomura may be out of commission for the moment but that doesn't mean he wouldn't try anything.

"Let's go ahead and get theses students back to the main campus. They've been through a lot, we don't need to question them right away."

I tensed at the detective's words. They were going to question us? Could I lie through it? Eiko once told me that I had a tick when I lied. I started to panic. Katsuki brushed my arm. I looked up at him. He did say anything but I relaxed slightly just knowing he was right there.

"Detective, what about Mr. Aizawa?" Tsu asked.

"I'm not sure. We can call the doctor." The detective pulled out a phone and called someone. "Yes, this is Detective Tsukauchi. His students were wondering how Eraserhead is doing?" The detective put his phone on speaker.

"The bones in his arms are splintered and he's got facial fracturing. Fortunately, there doesn't seem to be any serious damage. But his orbital floor has been almost completely destroyed. We have no way of knowing if his eyesight will be impaired once he's healed up."

"Well, you heard the man." The detective said.

Tears filled my eyes, my ears flattening, and tail tucking itself between my legs. I did this, it would be my fault if Aizawa lost his eyesight. My knees buckled and I fell to the ground. Tears spilled down my cheeks. It was all my fault. Everyone getting hurt was my fault. I could have stopped Tomura. I knew him. I could have refused to help him. I never should have told him anything. This was all my fault. Everything was spiraling around me. The darkness was closing in, I couldn't breathe. My chest hurt, everything hurt. This was my fault… Someone touched my shoulders. I jerked my head up. Katsuki was kneeling in front of me.

"Are you okay?" His voice was soft.

I took a shaky breath. "Yeah, I think so."

"Good," he held out a hand and helped me up.

I glanced down at our intertwined fingers and tightened my grip. Katsuki looked down at me.

"Just a little longer," I whispered.

He nodded and looked back at the USJ building. He was quiet for a moment.

"Come on man, we're going back to class now!" Kirishima called.

"Yeah, yeah, I heard him, you idiot." Katsuki glanced at me. "Let's go."

I nodded and trailed behind him. We all boarded the bus. I chose a seat next to Katsuki, not that I had much of a choice, he was still holding my hand. Everyone was silent the entire ride, much different from this morning. It was sunset when we made it back to UA. We walked back to the locker rooms to change out of our hero costumes. Once changed we headed to the classroom, Izuku still wasn't back from the nurse's office. We were told that school would be closed the next day then they dismissed us. I grabbed Katsuki's hand before he left the classroom.

"Hey, wait for me. There are a few things I have to do."

"Fine, but don't take forever." He scoffed.

"I won't." I managed a smiled.

I dashed out of the classroom and over to the nurse's office. I ran right into the detective, who was just exiting the nurse's office.

"Whoa, hey, are you okay?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I shrugged. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get in there."

"I don't think you can go in right now." The detective blocked my path.

"All Might said I could." I slipped under his arm.

All Might and Izuku were both sitting up in hospital beds.

"Koneko!" Izuku exclaimed.

"Hey, Izuku. How are you doing?" I asked.

"Um better now." He replied.

"I guess you're here to ask some questions." All Might said.

"Yeah, I have a hunch but I'm not positive." I shifted. "Both Izuku and 13 said something about your time. And Tom—the villain said that you were getting weaker."

"You hear a lot of things." All Might commented.

"I have enhanced hearing, I can hear most things," I replied.

"I'll keep that in mind." All Might laughed. "Now you're right about my time and I am getting weaker. I got in a fight five years ago and lost my stomach and most of my respiratory system. I can't keep up my hero form for very long."

"So the rest of the time you look like this," I whispered.

"Yeah, please don't tell anyone else." All Might said.

"Of course." I nodded. If I had figured this out a week earlier I would have gone straight to Tomura but not anymore.

"Thank you." All Might sighed. "I feel better now."

I shifted again. "I'm going to go home now. Um, I'll see you later Izuku."

I smiled and waved then headed outside. I walked around to the side of the school. I pulled out my phone and scrolled through my contacts. I pressed call on the unknown number. He picked up after a moment.

"What?"

"What? What?!" I hissed, tail flicking angrily. "You just put me through hell and you just say what?"

"So?"

"Tomura! None of that was according to plan. You could have killed us! You said you only wanted All Might."

"Well plans change." He growled. "Why are you getting so mad?"

"Because you almost killed my teacher and my friends!" I practically yelled.

"You're a villain. You shouldn't care about those things."

I wanted to scream. "Then maybe I'm not cut out to be a villain."

"You'll never find your sister then."

I stopped, ears flattening. I would never see Anzu again. I took a deep breath. "I can find her on my own. I'm done with you. I quit."

"If you quit, you'll be dead by morning."

His voice sent shivers down my spine. My confidence faltered. "I—I don't care. I won't let anyone else get hurt. I'll tell the heroes."

"Did I mention that we'll kill your friends if you tell? You, your family, and your friends will be dead by morning if you utter one word about this."

I froze. If I told then Katsuki and Izuku would die along with my family. "Fine, I'll stay."

"Good girl." He purred.

"Don't think I'll make this easy for you. You won't be getting information from me." I hissed, ears pinned back.

"Oh kitten, I think we will. You see if you refuse to cooperate with us. We will get your boyfriend and he won't survive unharmed."

I almost dropped my phone. "You wouldn't."

"Do you want to test me?"

"No," I faltered.

"Good. Now be a good kitten and keep your mouth shut."

"Yes," I managed and hung up. I stared at my phone until tears blurred my vision. I should go to the heroes now. I should tell them everything. But I couldn't. My life, my family's, and my friend's lives were at stake. I couldn't let them kill anyone else. My knees buckled and I came crashing to the ground, tears spilling over. I covered my mouth to muffle the sobs.

"Koneko?"

I looked up at the voice. Katsuki was standing at the corner of the building. I panicked, how much had he heard? He walked over and knelt by my side.

"What happened?" He reached over and brushed a few tears away.

I stared up at him for a moment then tackled him in a hug. He lost his balance and fall backward. I buried my face in his shoulder.

"I could have lost you today. You, Izuku, everyone. You all could have died." I whispered.

"What? Neko, is that what's got you so upset?"

I nodded. "It scared me, after seeing what happened to Mr. Aizawa. That could have happened to any of us."

Katsuki laughed. "Like I'd let someone like him take me out."

I pulled back to look at him. "But he was so powerful. His quirk could kill you in seconds."

"Not if I get to him first." He brushed a piece of hair out of my face. "I won't let someone take me out so easily. Especially if you back me up."

"Please be on your guard, we don't know when they'll strike again."

"If it makes you feel better, then I will."

I smiled, my first real smile of the day. "Thank you,"

He smiled back. I had the sudden urge to kiss him senseless. I reached up to play with the baby hairs on the back of his neck. His hands drifted down to my waist. I leaned in, gaze flickering down to his lips.

"Shouldn't we get going?" Katsuki whispered.

I pulled back. "Yeah, I guess so."

We both managed to get up. Katsuki offered me his hand. I stared at it for a moment then smiled and took it. He squeezed my hand and together we walked to the train station. I glanced up at the stars that we just beginning to appear. Maybe just maybe things would be okay. I smiled, of course, they would, as long as Katsuki was by my side everything would be fine.

* * *

The End!

Just kidding, there will be a book two. So stay tuned for that!


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